Plan Overview

This report provides a comprehensive look at the existing conditions around 13 elementary schools and 4 middle schools within the MSB and makes recommendations for improving the walking and biking environment. The recommendations are based on our engineering experience, best practices, input from parents and the Strategic Task Force, and compatibility with other planned projects. The recommendations focus on two components of the walking/biking environment: 1) The route to school: Where students currently walk or could potentially walk if the infrastructure was in place. 2) The drop-off/pick-up area: Ways to reduce vehicle congestion, separate buses from parent vehicles, and provide safe passage between vehicles and the school Safe Routes to Schools is a national program supported by US DOT. For more information visit: http://www.saferoutesinfo.org/ Alaska DOT also participates in this program.

The addendum document (2017) includes four more schools, not in the origonal plan.

For more information visit: http://www.dot.state.ak.us/stwdplng/saferoutes/

Plan Justification

This report is a planning document. It is intended to be a conceptual vision of the future walking/biking atmosphere around the 17 schools studied and to help guide future development projects. It is important to remember that the recommendations in this report are planning-level. They will be subject to more detailed study and design if moved into the design process.