Happy Back to School, Sooke! How we can make school routes safer for every student
Happy back to school! Sooke Elementary, we’ve missed your jokes!
Does anyone truly outgrow that first-day-of-school feeling? Nervous and exciting. New teachers, new classes, new friends. OK, as parents, maybe we don’t miss making lunches every morning. But the rest is pretty good. Round of applause to our teachers and school staff.
Back to school also means our streets are suddenly busier with kids walking, biking, waiting for buses, and crossing roads. So please slow down and keep an extra eye out.
A lot of what we've talked about in this campaign applies to getting our kids safely to and from school:
Safe routes to school. Some kids live too close to school to qualify for a bus, but still don't have a safe route to walk or bike.
Fill the gaps. Sometimes we need a sidewalk. Sometimes it's a pathway, safer crossing, or one missing connection that would make the whole route safer.
Slow down. Speeding and pedestrian safety comes up again and again as we knock on doors. Street design and traffic calming need to be part of the solution.
Families, tell us: where are the problem spots on Sooke's school routes? What are the easy fixes? And where do we need to make bigger investments?
And to all the parents heading into another school year: you're doing a great job. Raising kids is equal parts hilarious, exhausting, surprising, and wonderful. Enjoy the stories, the milestones, the ridiculous moments, and even a little bit of the chaos. It goes far too quickly. Have a great school year, Sooke!
