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Welcome to C-U Safe Routes to School!
C-U Safe Routes to School Project (C-U SRTS Project) is an organization with representatives from the CU Mass Transit District, Champaign County Regional Planning Commission, CU Public Health District, Urbana and Champaign planning, engineering and law enforcement, Champaign County Bikes, Urbana and Champaign School Districts, as well as other educators, parents, and community members. The project came about after four years of organizing Walk & Bike to School Day in Champaign and Urbana schools and deciding that there was more that could be done to educate the community on pedestrian and bicycle safety issues. |
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Events + Announcements
Walk 'n Roll to School Day - October 6, 2021
On Wednesday, October 6th, 2021, 8 elementary schools in Urbana and Champaign participated in the Walk n' Roll to School Day (WRTSD). Students walked and biked to school, where they were greeted and encouraged by friends, parents, teachers, U of I student athletes, elected officials, and community members. WCIA 3 News also did a news story of the event at the Dr. William Elementary event.
Thank you to the following schools for participating and making the event a success:
Urbana
Dr. Williams Elementary
King Elementary
Leal Elementary
Thomas Paine Elementary
Urbana Early Childhood School
Wiley Elementary
Yankee Ridge Elementary
Champaign
Booker T. Washington Elementary
Westview Elementary
Thank you to the following schools for participating and making the event a success:
Urbana
Dr. Williams Elementary
King Elementary
Leal Elementary
Thomas Paine Elementary
Urbana Early Childhood School
Wiley Elementary
Yankee Ridge Elementary
Champaign
Booker T. Washington Elementary
Westview Elementary
2020-2021 C-U SRTS Annual Report
The 2020-2021 C-U SRTS Project Annual Report is here! This report will give you full details of all of our events and activities during the 2020-2021 academic year.
Traffic Skills 101 - August 28th, 2021
Five students attended the Traffic Skills 101 course on August 28th. The course teaches adult cyclists the confidence they need to ride safely and legally in traffic or on trails. The 9-hour course is divided into two parts: a 4.5-hour online instruction session and a 4.5-hour on-bike session. Four of the students plan to go on to become a League Cycling Instructor (LCI).
Earn-a-Bike Program - August 2-5, 2021
C-U Safe Routes to School Project partnered with Don Moyer's Boys and Girls Club and Champaign County Bikes to conduct this year's Earn-a-Bike Program. The program teaches students basic bike maintenance and safety skills for riding on the road. We had 4 students participate in this year's program. We had amazing volunteers who gave freely of their time and expertise. Each student earned a bike by taking the Ride IL Bike Safety Quiz, helping assemble their bike, mastering on-bike handling skills, and successfully completing on-road riding. The students were also given a helmet, lock, bike light set, water bottle cage, and water bottle.
Download the full report regarding the event below!
Youth Instructor Certification Workshop - June 10th, 2021
C-U Safe Routes to School Project in partnership with the Stephens Family YMCA and Champaign County Bikes held a training workshop for youth cycling instructors on June 10th. The workshop used League of American Cyclists Smart Cycling curriculum enhanced with curriculum from the Danish Cycling Embassy called Cycling Games. Danish Instructor Lotte Bech participated in the training teaching about Cycling Games virtually and the instructor trainees practiced using the curricula with hands-on instructor in the afternoon with YMCA summer camp students. Each camper received a free helmet, bike month t-shirt, and a bike safety workbook. The train-the-trainer participants all received certification as Youth Instructors through the League of American Bicyclists.
Bike to School Day - May 5, 2021
Bike to School Day was a beautiful sunny day in C-U. Urbana Mayor Diane Marlin read a proclamation that made May 5th, 2021 Bike to School Day in Urbana. Students biked to School in Champaign, Urbana, and Savoy.
Get out during quarantine!
Even though the state has enacted a stay-at-home policy, walking and cycling is permitted and encouraged! Taking a walk or going for a bike ride are great ways to get out of the house and get some exercise while keeping a safe social distance. Here are a few links on walking and cycling during COVID-19 to check out:
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Check out the C-U SRTS Online Learning Package for new activities every week!
Etch-a-sketch style Strava Drawings: The Strava app lets users track their bike rides, so some users have been getting creative and using their rides to draw fun pictures. Give it a try!
Practice walking or cycling along routes to school with your kids while streets are calm!
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Annual Report 2019-2020
The C-U SRTS Annual Report is here! Check out the report for information on the events and activities conducted in the 2019-2020 school year. |
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Earn-A-Bike 2020
We partnered with Champaign County Bikes and Don Moyer Boys and Girls Club in Champaign to conduct Earn-A-Bike this year. The program is designed to teach student participants basic bike maintenance, mechanisms, and repairs, and safety while riding on the road. The program allows kids to earn a bike as they develop proficiency in basic bike riding, safety and maintenance skills. Six kids participated in this year's Earn-A-Bike program which took place from 20th-23rd July 2020. The four day program includes The C-U SRTS team recruited volunteers who were central to the success of this program. Check our events page to learn more! |
You can read and download the report on our Earn-a-Bike program here. |
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Bike RodeosYou will be part of a variety of fun tasks including helmet fitting, bicycle safety checks, scanning and signaling that help elementary school children learn and practice safe bicycling skills.
Our bike rodeos include a variety of tasks including helmet fitting, bicycle safety checks, scanning and signaling. We aim to help elementary school children learn and practice safe bicycling skills. We are always looking for helping hands! Your volunteer work will ensure our bike rodeos run smoothly. View details below. |
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Bike to School Day May 8th, 2019 In coordination with National Bike Month, Bike to School Day 2019 will be held on Wednesday, May 8th. This event is held to encourage children to safely bicycle or walk to school. It provides an opportunity for the community to connect with each other, celebrate and build off of the energy of National Bike Month. Check back on our website and Facebook page for more updates! |
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Recent Events
Walk n' Roll to School Day
This event was celebrated throughout the country on October 10th, 2018, encouraging students to make healthier choices for themselves and the environment. Walking and biking are great forms of exercise, and fairly easy to integrate into a child's daily routine.It offers children an opportunity to get to know their neighborhood, learn and practice safe pedestrian habits, and prepares them for the school day.
This event was celebrated throughout the country on October 10th, 2018, encouraging students to make healthier choices for themselves and the environment. Walking and biking are great forms of exercise, and fairly easy to integrate into a child's daily routine.It offers children an opportunity to get to know their neighborhood, learn and practice safe pedestrian habits, and prepares them for the school day.
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Risk Watch on Biking and Walking Safety
Risk Watch is a comprehensive injury-prevention curriculum implemented in our local grade schools. The program is designed to help children and families create safer homes and communities by teaching the skills and knowledge to make positive choices about personal safety and well-being.
As one of the "Risk Watch Experts" this year, Safe Route to School Project went into classrooms of Champaign elementary schools co-teaching bicycle and pedestrian safety topics. In our lessons, officers from Champaign Police Department introduced safe walking including using crosswalks, watching for cars, and being visible when walking, while Safe Route to School talked about safe biking - how to fit a helmet, and how to make basic hand signaling. Most importantly, we reinforced the importance of wearing helmets through an exciting "Melon Drop" demonstration. While the Scared Melon was cracked wide open after being dropped from a ladder, The Happy Melon who has a helmet was always sound and firm!
As one of the "Risk Watch Experts" this year, Safe Route to School Project went into classrooms of Champaign elementary schools co-teaching bicycle and pedestrian safety topics. In our lessons, officers from Champaign Police Department introduced safe walking including using crosswalks, watching for cars, and being visible when walking, while Safe Route to School talked about safe biking - how to fit a helmet, and how to make basic hand signaling. Most importantly, we reinforced the importance of wearing helmets through an exciting "Melon Drop" demonstration. While the Scared Melon was cracked wide open after being dropped from a ladder, The Happy Melon who has a helmet was always sound and firm!
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Mode Shift Fact Sheets
You've probably known that bicycling has tons of benefit of keeping our environment green and keeping you in good shape, but do you know riding a bike will also be a complete game changer for you financially? Check our fact sheet to see the all the statistics of bicycling compared with driving, and find your own reason of getting on a bike in this coming spring!
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C-U Safe Route to School project has hosted Walk to School Day in Urbana-Champaign for over ten years, and has received many smiles, laughs, thanks and high-fives along the way. Visit our archived photos to see what happened in previous year's event in Champaign-Urbana.
Parent Resources
Parents, how walkable and bikeable is your community? Take a walk or bike ride and use the checklists below to rate your neighborhood’s walkability and bikeability.
Quick Links
