Senator Jeff Merkley (D-OR) is co-sponsoring the Safe Routes to School Program Reauthorization Act, along with Senators Tom Harkin (D-IA), Richard Burr (R-NC), Bernard Sanders (I-VT), and Susan Collins (R-ME). The federal Safe Routes to School (SRTS) program was first created in 2005, and is up for reauthorization by Congress as part of the next surface transportation bill.
- More than 4,400 schools in all 50 states benefit from the SRTS program.
The reauthorization proposal plans to grow and enhance the federal SRTS program in several ways:
- Triple the annual funding, from $183 million to $600 million
- Make high schools eligible for the program, and allow states to spend part of the funding to improve bus stop safety in rural areas
- Add a research and evaluation component
Importantly, the proposal also aims to reduce the regulatory burden assumed by recipients of SRTS grants. Regulations help ensure that projects meet environmental and labor standards, but they also add unnecessary costs and delays to small SRTS projects. As a result, many communities in Oregon have opted to go after local funding instead of applying for federal grants. To date, Oregon has received $4.75 million from the federal government to spend on Safe Routes to School programs, but only $2.6 million has been awarded to local schools and communities.
To learn more about the successes and challenges facing Safe Routes to School, read the 2009 Policy Report and this study of the first three years of the program.
How does Safe Routs to School benefit children in rural areas where they must be bused long distances and really cannot walk to school due to distance?