Press Releases
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
May 9, 2007
Fountain City Parents Invited to Give Feedback on Safe Routes to School
May 14 -18 is Walk and Wheel to School Week and Fountain City Elementary is celebrating with rewards and healthy treats for children who ride their bicycles or walk to school. Additionally, Knox County Health Department and the Knoxville Regional Transportation Planning Organization, as part of their Safe Routes to School program, is hosting a workshop on Thursday, May 17, at 6:30 p.m. in the Fountain City Elementary School gym to discuss making it safer for Fountain City Elementary and Gresham Middle School children to walk or bicycle to school. Parents are invited to give input on what improvements are needed in the area to make it safer for children traveling to those schools. This information will be used to write a grant application for funding for improvements through the Federal Safe Routes to School (SRTS) Program.
The purpose of the Federal Safe Routes to School (SRTS) Program is to address these issues head on. At its heart, the SRTS Program empowers communities to make walking and bicycling to school a safe and routine activity once again. The Program makes funding available for a wide variety of programs and projects, from building safer street crossings to establishing programs that encourage children and their parents to walk and bicycle safely to school.
Donna Bueckman, who regularly walks with her children to school, is an active member of Fountain City Connections, a group working toward a more pedestrian-friendly Fountain City. "Fountain City is a wonderful place to live and has incredible potential to be a great walkable community," she says. "Many students live within walking or biking distance of the school, so we hope many will participate in Walk and Wheel to School Week. We're also hopeful that this event will raise public awareness about the difficulties children have walking to schools safely because of the lack of sidewalks and pedestrian pathways, and also make drivers more aware of the need to watch out for our children and all pedestrians."
Many parents remember a time when walking and bicycling to school was a part of everyday life. In 1969, about half of all students walked or bicycled to school. Today, however, the story is very different. Fewer than 15 percent of all school trips are made by walking or bicycling, one-quarter are made on a school bus, and over half of all children arrive at school in private automobiles.
The decline in walking and bicycling has had an adverse effect on traffic congestion and air quality around schools, as well as pedestrian and bicycle safety. In addition, a growing body of evidence has shown that children who lead sedentary lifestyles are at risk for a variety of health problems such as obesity, diabetes, and cardiovascular disease. Safety issues are a big concern for parents, who consistently cite traffic danger as a reason why their children are unable to bicycle or walk to school.
"Walking or biking to school promotes a healthier lifestyle by incorporating more exercise into our daily routine," Bueckman said. "And the bonus is that as more children walk or bike to school, it becomes a safer activity. For example, children can watch out for each other in a 'walking school bus' and drivers become more aware of the activity if there are more pedestrians rather than the rare occasion of a child walking."
"We are excited about the school's involvement in the federal Safe Routes to School program and look forward to working with Knox County Health Department and the Transportation Planning Organization on establishing safe routes for Fountain City Elementary students to use."
The Knox County Health Department is committed to promoting public health practices that safeguard and improve quality of life for all residents. The Health Department offers an array of services ranging from medical and dental care, disease control, emergency preparedness, air quality management, environmental services, food preparation oversight in public places, special programs for women with children and much more. For more information on the Knox County Health Department, visit their Web site at www.knoxcounty.org/health/index.php.
