Safe Routes To School

Walk, Bike, Bus... It's the Way to Go!

The Medford School District Safe Routes to School (MSD SRTS) program is all about creating safe, convenient and fun opportunities for students to walk and roll (skateboard, bike, scooter and bus) to and from school. This is important for the health and safety of our kids and to foster the creation of livable, vibrant communities. The SRTS program aims to increase physical activity and improve unsafe walking and bicycling conditions.

What We Do

• Education – pedestrian and bicycle safety lessons
• Engineering – Action Plans which advocate for targeted improvements to streets, signs and signals around schools
• Engagement – building relationships and the creation of programs that are most beneficial to community members
• Evaluation – program assessments, including student travel surveys
• Encouragement – activities promoting walking, biking and rolling to school
• Equity - the distribution of resources to reduce health and wealth disparities for all Medford School District students

Why We Do It

The benefits to children and communities who participate in the Safe Routes to School programs are extensive:

• Active kids perform 20% better at school and arrive with an increased ability to focus
• Less congestion and traffic along routes to school make our streets safer, while more students and families out walking and rolling increases their visibility
• Kids who walk or roll to school are getting about 2/3 of the recommended 60 minutes of daily physical activity, and being active not only increases physical health it also can help with mood regulation and increase mental health
• Walking and rolling strengthen our community connections. More eyes on the street = safer communities