Safe Routes to School Archive

Too Realistic

By Frank | Filed in Photos, Safe Routes to School

With my limitations spelled out via text message, I headed off to ‘Every 15 minutes‘ at my local high school.

I recently met NBPD’s Officer Anderson, who was coordinating the event at the school. I sat in a meeting with him where kids were nominated to participate. The idea behind the event is to scare the crap out of the kids as it relates to driving under the influence. I won’t know until later this afternoon how my son reacted, but it spooked me.

I came by bike and locked it up outside the principal’s office; if I had known the simulation was so far out behind the school, I might have just rolled up. So this long walk across campus gives me a little time to clear my head. I pass by the faux tombstones with the kids’ names and pictures. This would be a good program for Halloween.

Then I spot the stadium seating, way out back behind the school. As I walk towards it a hearse pulls up and parks. Then I see the crash site — two teens have been thrown from their vehicles; it was a head-on collision and everyone involved has spent hours in makeup. It’s very realistic. Then I hear the 911 call broadcast; someone is on the scene and is calling for help. She’s hysterical as she describes the scene. I know it’s all an illusion, but the 911 operator is making it sound so life like. Sirens signal help is on the way; first to arrive are the motorcycle cops. It’s looking a little too real for me; I feel choked up. I imagine they’ve rolled up to too many situations like this. Then come the fire truck and ambulance. One girl who’s a bloddy mess is put on a stretcher and taken away; one isn’t. A boy is covered with a sheet.

That’s enough for me. I don’t want the Chief to see me crying. Why is this so scary for me? Why can’t I just file this away as ‘simulated’? Because my teen driver is sitting in the stands; it’s just a little too close to home for me.

I’m not the only one affected. There are no cat-calls, no signs of disrespect from these high schoolers. They sit riveted; staring at the sheet.

Faux tombstones

Chief Johnson and half the department are on the scene

This simulated crash was a little too realistic for me


There would be no happy ending to this tale

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Pro Walk/Pro Bike, Here I Come

By Frank | Filed in City planning, Safe Routes to School

I registered early to save a little dough

After meeting Fred Kent, President of the Partnership for Public Spaces and sponsor of the upcoming Pro Walk/Pro Bike conference in Long Beach I jumped on the early-bird registration.

Join me and many other Southern California bike advocates, September 10-13, 2012. Register today.

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Martian Anthropologist

By Frank | Filed in Opinion, Safe Routes to School

It’s the day after Labor Day so we all know what that means, right?

Children all across town are heading out for the first day of school. Most will be driven there by Mom, some Dads, too, but few will walk or ride their bike. That’s how most of us got to school. Why aren’t there more kids riding their bikes today?

It’s because of our automobile-saturated society — we love our kids and we love our cars too, especially our giant SUVs. Of course that’s why we own a SUV in the first place; we justify the mass and expense of such a monster truck by telling ourselves it’ll be great for transporting kids.

So the roads will be crowded and traffic will be horrific — remember, you’re not stuck in traffic, you are traffic.

Things could be different, but we humans have a hard time with change. We prefer things stay the way they are, even if it makes it impossible for our children to ride their bikes to school.

Take this example — looking up Goldenrod from Coast Hwy in CdM. What would a Martian anthropologist say about our society if he learned that this was one of the main routes for our kids to get to elementary school?

Goldenrod, the route our kids take to get to school

I’m sure he would question our values and wonder why we stored so many multi-ton vehicles in the path of our kids on their way to school. Even to a Martian anthropologist, this situation would look dangerous.

Even to a Martian, it would be easy to imagine that all the stored vehicles (Martian for “parked cars”) should be removed from this 3 block path to school.

When the Martian heard the hue and cry from residents denouncing any plan to move their sacred cars, he’d be tempted to think we love them more than our kids.

Call me a space alien, but it’s easy for me to imagine a route to school with bike paths on both sides of the street instead of stored vehicles, I mean parked cars.

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