This week thousands of families at over 60 schools across San Francisco will celebrate the 6th annualSan Francisco Bike & Roll to School Week by taking to the city streets on bikes, scooters and more. This exciting week-long event kicks off the expansion of the City’s Safe Routes to School program that will take place during the 2014-2015 school year.
The City’s Safe Routes to School program, led by the Department of Public Health in partnership with the SF Unified School District, San Francisco Department of the Environment, Municipal Transportation Agency, San Francisco Bicycle Coalition, YBike and Walk San Francisco, currently works with 15 public schools across the city to promote walking, biking, transit and carpooling to school in order to support the unique needs of each school.
Safe Routes to School has taught thousands of San Francisco students about walking and biking safety and motivated thousands of parents to participate in “walking school buses” and “bike trains.”
Since it began in 2009, Bike and Roll to School Week (formerly Bike to School Day) has grown each year. In 2013, more than 2,000 San Franciscans participated in the big biking event. Now, expanding the event from a single day to a full week has enabled schools to pick a day during the week that works best for them to officially celebrate biking to school.
Says Leah Shahum, Executive Director of the San Francisco Bicycle Coalition, “We are proud to be part of the beloved Safe Routes to School program, responding to the growing demand from parents across the city to find ways to bike, walk, take transit and carpool to school. The rapidly growing popularity ofBike & Roll to School Week is a clear indication of the demand for family-friendly biking and rolling routes to school.”
“The School District supports a wide variety of healthy transportation options for getting to school. We are proud to be part of the expansion of the Safe Routes to School program to the entire district next year, increasing access to our schools for even more families.” says Richard Carranza, SFUSD Superintendent.
All parents and children participating in San Francisco Bike & Roll to School Week will be eligible to win an Xtracycle Edgerunner, featuring an electric assist provided by BionX and The New Wheel. Learn more at Safe Routes to School website.
Media Event
On Friday morning, April 25, Alvarado Elementary School will host the city’s media celebration of Bike & Roll to School Week. Alvarado stands out as a community committed to environmentally and personally healthy travel to school. One instance of this is the monthly Green Commute Day where where families pedal together in “bike trains” to school. On the most recent Green Commute day, 111 students and parents arrived to school by foot, pedal power or bus, and were welcomed by the parent/staff Go Green Committee.
Media Event: Friday, April 25, 2014, 7:45-8:00 am
Alvarado Elementary School School Assembly
625 Douglass Street (on schoolyard)
Resources
- See the list of participating schools
- To learn more abot the Safe Routes to School partnership program, visit sfsaferoutes.org.
- Enter to win the Xtracycle Edge Runner family bike
- To learn more about the San Francisco Bicycle Coalition’s family biking classes and resources, including our free Family Biking Guide, visit sfbike.org/family.
- For Bike and Roll to School Week photos, visit the SF Bicycle Coalition’s flickr feed. High-resolution images are available for download; credit San Francisco Bicycle Coalition
