Safe Routes to School Program will benefit students
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Walking or biking to two Palacios schools will soon get a lot safer for kids.
The city of Palacios and a team of citizens are working to construct a bridge on East Bayshore Drive and sidewalks.
“The bridge will give the children of the city a save route to school and will promote a safe, enjoyable and accessible walking and bicycling environment,” said John Groth, who is part of the Safe Routes to School project.
The proposed walk bridge will be 250 feet long, be eight feet wide and will be wheelchair accessible. The goal is to begin construction in the summer and hope to have it in place by the start of next school year, he said.
“Children will be able to use that bridge to get to school and not use the main road,” said Groth.
The construction of the bridge is expected to be complete by the fall of 2010. The construction of the sidewalks from bridge to elementary is planned by a 2011 completion date.
The city is working on a separate effort to have sidewalks built from the elementary to the high school. Total distance is 1.25 miles.
In 2008, the city of Palacios asked a group of citizens to construct a long-range plan for the city. The group identified the traffic bridge on East Bayshore Drive as a serious health and safety issue.
The streets the children use are narrow and have no crosswalks. Some home lots are small and houses are built close to the streets making intersections difficult or dangerous.
There is no traffic bridge with no attendant walkway and there is limited visibility due to the sharp incline, he said.
The current bike routes connecting the schools share the narrow city streets with vehicle traffic and there are no walkways for students, he said.
A combined 15 percent of students from both Central Elementary and East Side Intermediate walk to school everyday.
In 2009, The Matagorda County Navigation District one authorized the expenditure of $25,000 for engineering plans for the Pedestrian/bicycle Bridge adjacent to the vehicle bridge. They also donated the land to create the bridge.
The cost to construct the bridge is about $180,000 and in order to continue with the construction, Groth began applying for grants.
“This is when we found The Safe Routes to School plan,” he said.
The Safe Routes to School plan addressed local issues that impede the use of bicycles and walking specifically to the schools in the city.
The project is funded by the Texas Department of Transportation and only given for non-infrastructure.
“It is mostly for training programs such as safety items for the children, which the school district is doing a good job at,” he said.
Those safety items include having one-way streets, additional police coverage and “no cell phone” use in school zone areas.
After the draft plan was created and approved by TxDot, they were able to apply for the Safe Routes to School grant, he said.
The group has submitted two requestes to Texas Department of Transportation to obtain grants that they hope to use for the construction of the crosswalk bridge and sidewalks.
“One of the request is money for the bridge,” he explained. “The second request is money that will be used to put in the sidewalks that will allow the kids to go to and from school,” he said.
The committee has applied for other grants and is currently waiting for replies.
Through local fundraising and some donations they have raised approximately $95,000.
The committee is also selling engraved planks that will be placed on the bridge.
The local community support is positive, said Groth.
“Even the children are helping with the fundraising as well,” he said.
Students from the elementary schools have put out contribution cans in several local businesses in the area. The high school construction trade class will engrave the planks. Elementary students will participate in walks this year to raise money. The high school student council has also created a “Penny fund” that will help.