Posts Tagged ‘Arizona Department of Transportation’

Get to School the Old Fashioned Way

October 1st, 2012

When I was a kid, it seemed like everyone walked to and from school. Today, less than 15% of students walk or bike to school. Walking and biking to school is a great way to help students arrive at school energized and ready to learn – it also helps them reach the recommended 60 minutes of physical activity every day. By leaving the car at home, we can improve the air quality so our kids with asthma can be active outside too.

Wednesday, October 3rd is International Walk to School Day. Over 40 countries around the world celebrate the many benefits of walking and biking to school; in the U.S, more than 4,000 schools will hold events – including dozens in Arizona. Walk to School events can be as simple as a few kids and parents meeting to walk to school or hosting an assembly to launch a walk or bike to school challenge for the month of October. For some parents it’s about where there is a safe route for their kids to walk to school. Through a partnership with the Arizona Department of Transportation, we help parents evaluate their neighborhood’s safety.

There’s a great example of how a Casa Grande school figured out the solution on our healthy living page.  Right now there are 37 Walk to School Day events registered in Arizona through walktoschool.org. Check out what’s going on nearby and find out how you can register an event at your school.

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Holiday weekends call for extra care when driving

September 2nd, 2011

Over the last decade the Labor Day weekend has become one of the most dangerous weekends for car crashes (along with 4th of July and Thanksgiving weekends)…  so this weekend is a great time to think road safety.   Arizona has decreased the death rate from car, truck and motorcycle crashes by almost 50% in the last 5 years- but crashes are still the leading cause of death for people between 3 and 34.

Policy makers at various levels of government and the public at large can have an impact at reducing rates even further- but effective interventions require solid data.  Do you have partners or Stakeholders that need motor vehicle crash data to help make policy or staffing decisions?  Their first stop should be ADOT’s annual motor vehicle Crash Facts Report.  It provides a bonanza of useful data & statistics ranging from total crashes and fatalities and causes, percentages of incidents that were alcohol related, data on rural v. urban crashes and fatalities- even which days and times of days have more collisions (Friday afternoon is the peak for crashes including fatalities).  There are data about road conditions, lighting, even the kinds of crashes (head ons v. rear enders).  Lots of the data is broken down by gender and age too.  In short, it’s a gold mine for data about motor vehicle incidents and injuries in AZ.

It’s not just public officials that can make a difference… you can too.  For example, your community can work with the AZ Department of Transportation to conduct a Road Safety Assessment on state, local and tribal road facilities. The program is really a way for the public to bring road safety concerns to ADOT’s attention.  If you have an idea in your community you start working with your local transportation authority and other community members about making changes.   If your concern is part of the highway system you can contact ADOT or maybe even fill out their Road Safety Assessment Application.

By the way- car engineering improvements have greatly improved vehicle safety.  Check out this 2 minute video to see how a ’59 Bel Air fares v. a lighter ’09 Malibu at 40 MPH.  Make sure you watch the second half which shows what happens to the driver’s compartment.

Remember – buckle up, no matter when you’re on the road, but especially as you head out for the long holiday weekend.

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Gettin’ to School

July 7th, 2011

If you’re my age, you probably walked or biked to school- it was a basic part of our culture. Unfortunately the tradition has been lost (for now).  In 1969 half of all kids walked or bicycled to and from school and almost 90% of kids that lived within a mile of school walked or biked.  Today only 15% of kids walk or bike, and the number of trips made by cars has skyrocketed (I’m guilty with my kids too).

We’re trying to change that.  We just launched our new online assessment tool called the Active School Neighborhood Checklist as a first step. We’re partnering with the Arizona Department of Transportation Safe Routes to School Program to develop a tool that generates a score which represents the walkability, bikeability and safety of schools.  The results of this assessment will help communities, school facilities professionals, schools, and city officials identify barriers that prevent students from walking and biking to school each day and create solutions to encourage neighborhoods to be more physically active.

Many thanks go to the WIC Information Technology team for creating this first-of-its-kind instrument.  We’re very proud of its partnership with ADOTs Safe Routes to School Program — a key connection between the built environment and health.

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