Projects Selected for Safe Routes to School Funding

May 8, 2017 - Denver Metro Colorado/CDOT Region 1 - Colorado’s Transportation Commission is providing $2.5 million to fund 14 Safe Routes to School (SRTS) projects this year.

Both infrastructure and education and encouragement projects are included and all enable and encourage children to walk or bicycle to and from school by providing financial support to schools and communities across Colorado.

“Communities across Colorado are making a commitment to support safe routes to school for their school children,” said Safe Routes to School Program Manager Leslie Feuerborn.  “For the eleventh straight year, the Colorado Department of Transportation (CDOT) received more requests for funding than it had available.  That’s very encouraging since it indicates a strong interest in getting more students walking and biking to and from school, teaching children pedestrian and bicycling safety, encouraging healthy living, and improving the built environment to support active transportation.”

The following entities will receive funding for their proposed project, selected through a competitive process:

Infrastructure projects

  • City of Canon City
  • City and County of Denver
  • City of Durango
  • Town of Fraser
  •  Town of Frederick
  • Jefferson County
  • City of Lafayette
  • City of Loveland

Education and Encouragement projects

  • Boulder County Transportation
  • City of Boulder
  • Cherry Creek School District #5
  • Denver Public Schools
  • Jefferson County Public Health
  • Steamboat Springs School District

Grantees design programs that meet the needs of their schools and their community. Projects vary from sidewalks installations, intersection crossings improvements, and connector trails to educating elementary and/or middle school students about bicycle and pedestrian safety and skills training to communication campaigns.  In some projects, physical education teachers receive train-the-trainer programs to aid them in sustaining programs at their schools. Purchasing bicycles for use in PE programs is a component in several grant projects.  Encouragement programs are various, from hosting Walk and Bike to School Days, Hike and Bike Days, Tires-n-Tennies Tuesdays, or Walking Wednesdays. Organizing Walking School Buses and Bike Trains are components for several projects. All have the goal to increase the number of students walking and biking safely to and from school.

The list of this year’s awarded projects can be viewed at: http://www.codot.gov/programs/bikeped/safe-routes

A committee representing bicyclists, pedestrians, educators, law enforcement, parents, metropolitan planning organizations and transportation planning regions reviewed and scored this year’s 22 applications.  Any political subdivision in the state (school district, city, county, state and tribal entity) was eligible to apply for a grant.  Several non-profits are working with grantees to provide pedestrian and bicycle safety education and encouragement.

“As we’ve completed the eleventh year of the program, we are very pleased with the progress we’ve made,” added Feuerborn.  “Along with enhancing safety, SRTS is a good way to introduce active transportation to children.”  Another part of the program is the annual Walk to School Day in October and Bike to School Day in May.  Already this year, 110 schools have registered their events for Bike to School Day which is recognized nationally on Wednesday, May 10, with events running throughout May.

The Safe Routes to School program was originally established by Congress in August 2005. This year’s projects are funded with federal funds that are managed by CDOT.

For additional information, please visit these websites:

Colorado Safe Routes to School: www.codot.gov/programs/bikeped/safe-routes

National Center for Safe Routes to School: www.saferoutesinfo.org    

Walk and Bike to School Day: www.walkbiketoschool.org