What Is Cupertino's Safe Routes 2 School?

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Creating a Safer Environment for Active Travel to and from School

Background: Cupertino is localizing the larger National Safe Routes to School Program and is mirroring successful model programs that have reduced traffic accidents, reversed the decline in students walking and bicycling to schools, and lessened the alarming nationwide trend toward childhood obesity and inactivity. Data shows us that as much as 20 to 30% of morning traffic can be generated by parents driving their children to school, and traffic-related crashes are the top cause of death and major injury for children in the U.S. ages 1 to 17 (National Center for Safe Routes).

Mission Statement: Create a safer environment for Cupertino students and families to travel to and from school actively.

Goals: Through this initiative, Safe Routes to School (SR2S) members (educators, parents, students, city planners and engineers, business and community leaders, bicycle and pedestrian advocates, community volunteers, etc.) examine conditions around schools and come together in a large Working Group to share ideas, recommend projects to improve safety and accessibility, and reduce traffic and air pollution around our local schools. As a result, members help make bicycling and walking to school a safer and more appealing transportation choice, encourage a healthier and more active lifestyle from an early age, and promote social connections and responsibility.

Check out our video on the goals of CUPERTINO SAFE ROUTES TO SCHOOL!

A History of Cupertino Safe Routes to School

City Council Resolution in Support of Safe Routes Pilot (April 7, 2015):
Cupertino Union School District: Resolution in Support of Safe Routes Pilot (April 21, 2015).
Fremont Union High School District: Resolution in Support of Safe Routes Pilot (April 21, 2015).

Safe Routes 2 School - An International Movement

What: Safe Routes 2 School (SR2S) is an international initiative targeted at improving the health and well-being of children by increasing the number of students who walk or bike to school.

How: The initiative combines encouragement events and infrastructure changes in an effort to remove barriers that prevent people from traveling actively to and from school. SR2S programs examine conditions around schools and develop projects and activities that improve safety, increase accessibility, and reduce traffic and air pollution. As a result, these programs help make bicycling and walking to school a safer and more appealing transportation choice. By encouraging active and healthy lifestyles, students are then able to reap the physical and developmental health benefits of those lifestyles at an earlier age.

Why: SR2S promotes community, environmental responsibility, physical health, safety, and academic performance!

Program Roots: The concept of Safe Routes 2 School (SR2S) began in Odense, Denmark, in the 1970's and stemmed from concerns about the safety of children walking and bicycling to school. The SR2S concept spread internationally and was adopted by states, counties, cities, school districts, schools, and groups of concerned citizens. The rapid decline in kids walking and biking to neighborhood schools paired with the success of pilot SR2S programs began to generate interest in a federally funded national program, and in 2005 Congress dedicated $1 billion dollars to the Federal-Aid Safe Routes 2 School program. Learn more by reading the National Center for Safe Routes 2 School’s Program Guide.

Where: Interested in learning about which communities have a successful Safe Routes 2 School program? Among those recognized for their achievements are Cupertino’s neighbors, including: