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Worldwide event is pedestrian matter
By NEGAR TEKEEI
© St. Petersburg Times, ST. PETERSBURG -- At 7:15 a.m. Tuesday, about 150 Shore Acres Elementary students weren't riding in cars or buses. They were on the sidewalk -- walking to school. Nearly 100 parents, school officials, police officers, Federal Express employees and volunteers accompanied the backpack-lugging children who trotted along Tanglewood Drive for five blocks to their final destination. One hour later, similar entourages gathered near two other St. Petersburg schools -- Bay Point Elementary and North Shore Elementary -- to join millions of other parents, children and those concerned about pedestrian safety in a worldwide Walk This Way. The morning walk was sponsored locally by the Suncoast Safe Kids Coalition, All Children's Hospital, Federal Express, 3M, and city fire, police and transportation officials. The goal was to address street and sidewalk safety issues and to encourage students to walk and bike to school, said Roy Adams, director of volunteer services with the Safe Kids Coalition at All Children's Hospital. This is the third year St. Petersburg has been involved in the event. Officials say they hope it will expand each year as more schools push for safer streets and sidewalks and realize the benefits of students walking to school. The schools involved in Tuesday's walk were the only ones that expressed interest in participating after the city sent out a letter in the spring. Janice Thomas, support services manager for the city's transportation department, coordinated the event. She said Tuesday she was pleased with the turnout because it was important that parents experience what their children encounter during a walk to school. Parents were given a survey asking questions about the safety of their child's walk to school and problems they may have encountered along the way, such as speeding drivers, scary dogs or overgrown shrubbery. Although more than 200 parents joined their children at the three schools in support of the event, some said they were still hesitant to let their children walk to school because of age, distance and a concern for safety. "It's still a little bit early for him to walk to school," said Roxanne Frakes, smiling at her 7-year-old son, Lucas. "I used to walk to school in kindergarten, but you can't let them do that these days. There are too many things to contend with -- not just traffic." Robert Clarihou, whose 10-year-old son, Garrett, attends North Shore Elementary, said he wouldn't let his son walk or bike the 5 blocks to school just yet. "It's the safety and trust aspect," he said. "People aren't the same as they were 20 years ago; you never had to think twice about strangers." But school officials stressed the point of the walk was to raise awareness of general pedestrian safety issues and help families who live near schools explore the possibility of children walking to school. Linda Evers, magnet coordinator at Bay Point Elementary, said many of her school's children already walk to school and the 200-plus turnout at Bay Point was an impressive show of parental support. "It was incredible, they just started pouring in and we stretched from 62nd Avenue to 58th," she said. "Hopefully parents picked up some tips that they took for granted when walking with their children."
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From the Times South Pinellas desks |
