“Caltrans Awards TAMC and Partners $664,127 Grant for The Salinas Valley Safe Routes to School Plan”

MONTEREY COUNTY – The Transportation Agency for Monterey County (TAMC) announced that the California Department of Transportation (Caltrans) has awarded the agency and its partners, Monterey County Health Department and Ecology Action, a Sustainable Communities Transportation Planning Grant in the amount of $664,127 for the Salinas Valley Safe Routes to Schools Plan. The money, matched with $126, 501 of Measure X funds, will be used to identify safe routes to school and active transportation improvements for twenty-two K-12 public schools serving nearly 16,000 students in the cities of Gonzales, King City, Soledad and Greenfield. The Salinas Valley Safe Routes to School Plan process will be driven by community input and data collected through walking audits, surveys and other sources. For the first time in TAMC’s history, this Safe Routes to School Plan will include establishment of a Steering Committee to support citizen involvement and pilot a participatory budgeting process. Through participatory budgeting, residents of the Salinas Valley cities will be empowered to identify and select a set of “quick-build” projects for implementation upon adoption of the plan. The selected “quick-build” projects will be funded with Measure X funds reserved for infrastructure improvements. Debbie Hale, TAMC’s Executive Director, explains that “The Plan will identify low-cost, healthy and safe transportation options for students in communities where the potential to walk or bike is great, but due to insufficient infrastructure the majority of students are driven to school.” The need to create safe routes to school is underscored by the fact that children under the age of 14 account for more than half of all bicycle and pedestrian crashes in the four cities, while they only represent a quarter of the population. The Salinas Valley Safe Routes to School Plan will provide a timeline for implementation, identify high priority projects and match potential funding sources with projects. The Final Plan will go before the five School Districts Boards and to each of the City Councils for adoption in February 2024. Prioritized quick-build projects will be implemented using Measure X funds reserved for infrastructure improvement soon after adoption of the Plan. For more information, about the Safe Routes to School Program, contact Ariana Green, Senior Transportation Planner, TAMC at ariana@tamcmonterey.org or 831-775-4403. “The Transportation Agency for Monterey County (TAMC) is responsible for investing in regional transportation projects for Monterey County residents, businesses and visitors. The mission of TAMC is to develop and maintain a multimodal transportation system that enhances mobility, safety, access, environment quality and economic activities in Monterey County. For more information visit www.tamcmonterey.org or call 831.775.0903.” The ”Safe Route to School” is a TAMC program which offers tools, programming, and resources to schools, guardians, and communities aimed at improving safety and traffic around schools. The program’s goal is to keep every child safe and healthy by reducing the number of students involved in collisions to zero. For more information visit: https://saferoutesmonterey.org “The Monterey County Health Department exists to enhance, protect and improve the health of the people in Monterey county. To accomplish this, the Department provides a wide variety of health-related services in the area of public health, environmental health, behavioral health and clinic services.“ https://www.co.monterey.ca.us/government/departments-a-h/health “Ecology Action is a recognized statewide leader in the effort to create a thriving environment and low-carbon economy. We design effective programs, successfully activate communities, forge mutually beneficial partnerships and influence policy to advance equitable, climate-smart initiatives.” https://ecoact.org/