ROBERT PIERCE
• Leader & Times
The Kansas Department of Transportation’s Safe Routes to School (SRTS) program is continually growing and adjusting to make it applicable, useful and what students and families across Kansas need.
This month, KDOT adopted its first Strategic Action Plan, which documents the program’s vision and goals. The plan also defines a path forward for future years by laying out priority strategies and actions.
The Strategic Action Plan process included engagement with the public and stakeholders to ensure the final plan would reflect the needs, desires and context of students and families throughout the state.
“The Strategic Action Plan is the general focus on the six topics, which is engineering, education, encouragement, enforcement, equity and engagement,” KDOT Public Information Officer for Southwest Kansas Yazmin Moreno said. “The goals and the strategies reflect what Kansas communities, active transportation advocates, state agencies, local partners, stakeholders and other KDOT staff identified as priorities for the program over the next five years.”
Moreno said the vision for SRTS in Kansas is for students and families of all backgrounds and abilities to walk, bike and roll to school in their community safely, comfortably and enjoyably, and she added six goals were identified as essential to support that vision.
“The number one goal is to increase the knowledge of and participation in Kansas for the Safe Routes to School program,” she said. “The second goal is to increase the number of students and families who have access to Safe Routes to School resources and education. The third goal is to support Kansas communities in Safe Routes to Schools planning and infrastructure efforts. The fourth goal is to establish and sustain partnerships to advance the Safe Routes to School program. The fifth goal is to ensure the Safe Routes to School program is accessible for all Kansas students and families of all backgrounds and abilities. The sixth goal is to track the progress of Safe Routes to School efforts to keep the program relevant and impactful.”
In Southwest Kansas, Moreno said two communities, one school district, Dighton USD 482 in Lane County and one library, the Stanton County Library, are participating in SRTS at this time and have both received Kickstart grants.
“USD 482 in Dighton and the Lane County Sheriff’s Department organized and hosted a bike rodeo,” she said. “Students were able to bring their bikes and helmets to school. All the bikes were checked for safety, and helmets were fitted. The sheriff’s office did a safety presentation. They demonstrated to the students safety skills by completing an obstacle course on their bikes. Students and parents received safety materials. Students were provided reflective backpacks, LED light up bracelets and neon colored water bottles. It looks the students loved the event. The sheriff’s office commented on how well behaved the students were and how well planned and organized the event was.”
Moreno said the Stanton County Library work with a local health coalition there to organize a safety presentation by the Stanton County Sheriff’s office for the elementary school in Johnson.
“The students received a safety transportation activity book with crayons, a safety brochure, a reflective sticker to increase visibility while biking, walking and rolling,” she said. “Free helmets were given to students. We also helped the students fit the helmets for the students. The sheriff’s department and the school volunteered for that. Free bike lights were also provided. We know kids are eager to learn, but they were astonished by the amount of kids who wanted a helmet.”
As with the presentation in Dighton, the Stanton County Sheriff’s office praised children in Johnson as they were seen wearing helmets in public.
“They were very excited to see them, and it’s a really good indicator of how successful this event was,” Moreno said.
Since 2007, more than 50 SRTS programs have been developed in Kansas, and Moreno said the hope is to see counties and communities continue to get engaged in the program.
“Between 2007 and 2015, Finney, Gray, Lane, Stevens and Stafford counties participated in Safe Routes to School,” she said. “Between 2016 and 2024, Grant, Pawnee, Stafford and Stanton counties participated. It looks like Ulysses was awarded in 2024 to construct a crosswalk at their middle school in response to their Safe Routes to School plan that was published in 2022.”
Dodge City likewise has construction projects being designed to improve safety for students walking to and from school at Gunsmoke Trail, Comanche Extension and the South Dodge Walking Trail.
Last fall, more than 200 Kansas residents and SRTS stakeholders completed an online survey asking about current efforts, barriers, opportunities and needs. Moreno said KDOT heard from communities throughout the Sunflower State eager to learn and get engaged in SRTS.
“They want to implement active transportation opportunities for their students, families and community,” she said. “Suggestions ranged from identifying new and creative ways to communicate with local communities about the benefits of Safe Routes to School and how they can start or expand on Safe Routes to School programs, to identify and connect funding opportunities to local communities and implement projects identified in Safe Routes to School plans and ensure Safe Routes to School materials and events are accessible to individuals and families from K to 12 and of all backgrounds and abilities throughout the process. This feedback helped us create action items and the strategies section of the program.”
Moreno said the SRTS committee identified a few barriers to students walking, biking and rolling to school, including traffic safety, distance, autocentric cultural mindsets and fear of criminal activity such as abduction and human trafficking.
“Parent surveys were completed as part of this Safe Routes to School planning process to identify the barriers present for that area,” she said. “That’s where some of those barriers came from.”
The SRTS project team hosted four focus groups attended by PTA representatives and parents, public health officials, transportation planners and engineers, school administrators and teachers. Among ideas heard from the focus groups were
• Building relationships statewide with` local media organizations to promote and share information on Safe Routes to School
• Identify new and creative ways to communicate with local communities about the benefits of Safe Routes to School and build local efforts
• Build relationships with municipal partners and with school partners
• Conduct research to better understand the unique challenges students and families and communities in Kansas face and how Safe Routes to School can impact health outcomes and school absenteeism
• Assist communities in identifying unique partners who can assess and support Safe Routes to School programs.
Moreno said SRTS plans have identified strategies for motorists to make conditions safer for walking and biking to school.
“This includes reducing speeds, traffic calming, high visibility crosswalks, sidewalks and paths,” she said. “Funding is available from the Transportation Alternative for these types of projects.”
Moreno said inclement weather such as that seen recently in Southwest Kansas can affect ability and motivation for students to walk, bike and roll to school, but eyes must be kept on the prize of the ultimate goal of SRTS.
“It is important to keep in mind that many students don’t have an option to be driven in poor weather,” she said. “Those are the students these plans are most critical for.”
Studies show in 1969, about 50 percent of all students and 90 percent of students who lived less than a mile from their school walked or biked. Today, that number is closer to 15 percent.
In earlier days, two-parent households were more common with one parent working and the other staying home, while today’s world sees the same household with both parents working or single-parent households with the parent working. Moreno said, however, this does not necessarily play a part in the decline of students walking, biking and rolling to school.
“If anything, this stat would make walking and biking to school more important and convenient for the parents,” she said. “The Safe Routes to School targets K to 12 students. Every plan is driven by the community participation.”
Moreno said solutions vary with the needs of each school and the students who attend, but SRTS promotes a more healthy lifestyle for communities, students and families.
“For those to be attainable, we want communities to participate in these programs to enhance the walkability, the infrastructure for these schools so students can have an accessible to walk, roll or bike to school,” she said.
Moreno said communities can even plan for those students who live further from their schools than some.
“The Safe Routes to School plan typically studies the area within a two-mile radius of the school,” she said. “Biking paths may be considered if feasible for longer distances such as three miles. It’s the fiscal responsibility and the community leaders’ responsibility to determine busing students who live too far to walk or bike. If they choose to have a longer path, sidewalks along community roads, a transportation system in their town would be more city, county leadership, but usually, it’s the school’s responsibility to determine busing needs for students who are further away from the school.”
Moreno said there is not necessarily a schedule with SRTS, but at this time, progress is being made with the program.
“We’re really happy with the progress we’ve made in the last year and a half,” she said. “We always wish we could make changes faster. We were named one of the most improved states. We are currently making improvements.”
Improvements, though, are something Moreno said are hard to make quickly.
“It’s progress,” she said. “It’s steady progress, and right now, we’re seeing improvement throughout the nation.”
Moreno said KDOT sees a promising future for the SRTS program.
“With the growing awareness of health, environmental sustainability and active lifestyles, I think we’ll see more communities embracing safer routes, cycling and friendly initiatives,” she said.
Moreno said she is quite excited about SRTS.
“Hopefully, more communities in Southwest Kansas get to participate or are eager to participate in this program,” she said. “We have a couple communities currently involved in this, but I’m hoping we can get more so we can help other communities and schools in Southwest Kansas.”
