MEDIA OPPORTUNITY:

• Walk To School Day / October 2, 2001 / 8 a.m. to 8:45 a.m.
• Mark Twain Junior High School / 707 South Emerald Avenue / Modesto, CA
• For more information, contact Lisa Schmelz at (209) 558-7162.
• On October 2, contact Lisa Schmelz by cellular phone at (209) 602-1678.
• Mark Twain Junior High School officials can be reached at (209) 576-4814 from 8a.m. to 4:30p.m., Monday through Friday.

"Times have changed and students just don’t walk to school in the numbers they once did," says Dan Austin, vice-chairman of the Safe Communities Coalition, a traffic and pedestrian safety planning group in the Stanislaus County Health Services Agency, and the program coordinator for On The Safe Side, a bicycle safety program with the Center for Human Services. "Most kids who don’t have a school bus available to them opt not to walk and end up getting a ride in a private car. The problem with that is that it adds to pollution and reduces the amount of physical activity children get."

But many parents just don’t feel safe letting their children walk to school, fearing for their child’s safety on busy streets or, worse, fearing child abduction. Walk To School Day organizers around the world, and here in Modesto, are trying to allay those fears with student walking groups, neighborhood patrols and increased security on frequently traveled routes to school.

The behavior of motorists is what most concerns Mark Twain Principal Phil Alfano. "Our biggest problem for students who walk to and from school is folks speeding through the crosswalks and almost striking kids and adults. We also see drivers who don’t stop at stop signs and that creates a real danger. Motorists need to be more careful when driving around schools," Alfano says.

While walking on Oct. 2 with VIP escorts, including Modesto Mayor Carmen Sabatino and Modesto City Councilwoman Kenni Friedman, Mark Twain students will complete a "walk-ability checklist", noting hazards they encounter. The checklists will be turned over to the Safe Communities Coalition, a pedestrian and traffic safety planning group in the Stanislaus County Health Services Agency.

The Safe Communities Coalition will then compile the results of the "walk-ability checklists" as part of an 18-month traffic and pedestrian safety planning grant and work with law enforcement, public works and other city and county personnel to eradicate noted hazards.

FAST FACTS:

An average of 86 children are killed or injured each day in the U.S. as pedestrians. Children aged five through 15 make up only 16 percent of the U.S. population, but account for nearly 30 percent of all pedestrian injuries and fatalities. U.S. Department of Transportation, 1994

78 Percent of children do not get the daily-recommended 30 minutes of moderate physical activity and 20 minutes of vigorous activity several times a week. International Walk To School Day Website, 2001

The Stanislaus County Health Services Agency (HSA) is an outpatient medical system with 9 medical offices located throughout Stanislaus County. The HSA operates the Public Health Department, an Urgent Care Center and multiple programs serving over 475,000 patients and clients each year in Stanislaus County. The HSA also is in local partnerships for the MOMobile project and the Stanislaus Family Practice Residency Program. The HSA has extensive community health information available at its web site www.hsahealth.org