Back to School Safety Month

August is Back to School Month in Florida! This means it's time to be especially focused on safety; bus, pedestrian, bicycle, child and vehicle safety. Almost 51 million students attend America’s public elementary and secondary schools; of that number, over 35 million attend pre-kindergarten through 8th grade.

August means kids will begin commuting back to school on foot, by bicycle and by school bus or private vehicles. It is important to note that school buses are the safest way for children to commute to and from school. Students are 70 times more likely to get to school safely when taking a bus than when traveling by car. (NHTSA School Bus Safety)

Below are some helpful tips to help you and your children stay safe on the way to and from school:

Pedestrians:

Always use sidewalks whenever possible
If there is no sidewalk, walk facing traffic
Use marked crosswalks to cross the street, and look left-right-left for vehicles and bikes before crossing; if there is no crosswalk, cross at an intersection
Watch the road, not your phone and never use headphones or airpods while walking
Walk in groups if at all possible, as there is safety in numbers

Bicyclists:

Always wear a helmet that is properly sized, fitted and secured (Don't have a helmet? The River to Sea TPO can help! Contact us at Pblankenship@r2ctpo.org)
Ride on the sidewalk whenever possible; come to a complete stop before crossing streets and walk your bike across
Watch for opening car doors, cars backing out of driveways and other potential hazards
Use proper hand signals when turning or stopping

Driving

In school zone areas, always slow down and be extra cautious
When backing out of your driveway, watch out for kids walking or biking to school
Be alert! Children can be unpredictable and may dart out into the road without looking for traffic
Allow a greater following distance when you are behind a bus than if you were following a car - a minimum of three car lengths
The area 10 feet around a school bus is the most dangerous for kids; stop far enough away to allow them enough space to safely enter and exit the bus
Always follow the laws regarding stopping for a school bus that is stopped (see graphic below)

Upcoming TPO Activities

This month, the TPO Board and committees will be reviewing and taking action to authorize the filing of a "Safe Streets and Roads for All (SS4A)" grant application with the US Department of Transportation (USDOT).

The purpose of the SS4A grant program is to improve roadway safety by significantly reducing or eliminating roadway fatalities and serious injuries through safety action plan development and implementation focused on all users; pedestrians, bicyclists, public transportation users, motorists, personal conveyance and micro-mobility users and commercial vehicle operators.

The River to Sea TPO will be requesting SS4A grant funds to develop a Comprehensive Safety Action Plan. The federal share is 80% and the required local matching share is 20%. The joint applicants (Volusia and Flagler Counties) have agreed to pay the local share. In addition, Flagler County government has agreed to represent the rural (non-urbanized) areas of Flagler County, which will enable the Comprehensive Safety Action Plan to cover the entire geographic area of Flagler County (as well as Volusia County).

The Comprehensive Safety Action Plan's main component will be a safety analysis. This analysis will identify safety improvements for roadways and provide a cost-to-benefit analysis as well as estimated costs for the identified improvements.

Once the plan is completed, the TPO can then apply to the USDOT for funding for the improvements. In doing so, these projects can be funded years earlier than they normally would through the typical allocations we receive each year.

For more information on the SS4A grant go to: SS4A Grant Information.

A presentation on the SS4A Grant from the USDOT is available at: USDOT SS4A Presentation

Additional information on agendas for TPO Board and committee meetings is available at: River to Sea TPO

Information on TPO outreach and activities is available at: Outreach & Activities

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