Biking Questionnaire for School Candidates

The candidates were asked three questions:

1. What do you see as benefits of children getting to school by walking, biking, or rolling?

   Part of the Strategic Vision of PSB is an "Ethic of Wellness". This value asks the school district to "teach and adopt sustainable practices and inspire and empower students to be good stewards of the earth". Given this ethic, having students walk, bike, or roll to school provides several obvious benefits, most importantly, fewer vehicle trips back and forth to the schools and more opportunities for fresh air and "taking your time" - one of the many benefits of walking, biking, or rolling. The exercise involved in a non-vehicle commute to school is also an important consideration and parents and caregivers may also feel more positively about their child (or children) safely leaving the home on their own or with neighbors to get to and from school.

2. Do you think there is a potential to encourage many more students to walk, bike, or roll to school? If so, what steps do you think the Town would need to take to achieve this goal?

   While I don't have any statistics to address whether "many more" students could be encouraged to walk, bike, or roll to school, I believe that the potential certainly exists to work towards this goal. Both the school and the Town (via the Transportation Board and its subcommittees) need to assess the status of the routes that students can take to their respective schools and determine if there are opportunities for improvement. Certainly, providing a Safe Route to School from South Brookline to BHS is one prime opportunity. Determining if there are students who would bike or roll to school but need a bike or rolling equipment is also a consideration. It would be important for the Town and School to work together to develop a process for ensuring that students who wish to bike or roll but don't have access to the equipment can acquire such equipment. Finally, the level of "peace of mind" that parents and caregivers must have to allow their children to safely navigate the streets and sidewalks of Town must also be considered. The Town and School District should partner to ensure that sufficient safety training is provided to bikers and rollers (and walkers) and that students transiting the Safe Routes to School have a high level of confidence that vehicular traffic is being managed well to mitigate any risks. I would add that sufficient parking for bikes and scooters that are used for commuting must also be provided. Further, some level of charging stations must be considered as well to support and encourage e-Bike and e-Scooter users.

3. In your role on the School Committee how would you assist PSB administrators to prioritize and communicate school drop off guidelines for everyone, including people in cars, bicycles, scooters, skateboards, and walking?

   One of the three responsibility areas of the School Committee is the development and management of curricular and operational policies that support the district. In my role on the School Committee, I would ensure that the guidelines for school drop-off are clearly defined (potentially within a policy, if not already) and that all stakeholders are made aware of the process. If improvements are needed to improve safety (signage, street marking, etc.), reduce bottlenecks, and mitigate risk to all involved in the drop-off (or pickup) practices, I would work within the School Committee, via one of its subcommittees, to look at all drop-off options, solicit comprehensive public feedback, and address making policy changes as appropriate. The most important consideration is the safety of all involved and, especially, our students/children.