From the Safe Routes to School Committee - August 31, 2021

Students will be back to school soon and many will be getting there on foot or bike. The Safe Routes to School Committee (SRTS) works year-round to make it safer and easier for children to walk and bike to and from school.

Studies have found that physical activity, such as walking or biking to school, allows students to concentrate better during the school day. And while many students in our county do not live in Grand Marais, some walk or bike to an afterschool destination in Grand Marais. In the upcoming weeks, crosswalk repainting, Slow Down lawn signs, an additional speed feedback sign, and school zone speed and crosswalk enforcements will be at work to remind our community of the upcoming start of the school year and drive carefully to keep students safe.

The SRTS Committee hopes to revive our Walk and Roll Wednesday group, a weekly

walk or bike to school club. Follow our Facebook page for updated information, or if you

would like to volunteer as a weekly walk group leader.

For safety, it is recommended that you pick a route with your child and test it out

together. Once a student and parent/guardian set a route, it is best that the student

follows it consistently so that an adult knows where the student is traveling. The SRTS

recommended walking route map is on your school’s website or available upon request

from the SRTS Coordinator. *Please note that the Safe Routes to School group,

Minnesota Department of Health, and Statewide Health Improvement Program work

together to encourage walking and bicycling to school, but do not ensure safety or

assume liability for anyone’s commute to or from school.

Another important piece of Safe Routes to School is school bus safety. Please be

mindful around school buses. Remember that you must stop at least 20 feet away from

a school bus that has its stop arm out and red lights flashing. You will need to wait until

the stop arm is up and the red lights are no longer flashing before you can move

forward. Please help us keep our students safe this year!

The SRTS Committee worked through 2020-2021 to have the school zone officially

designated by the County Commissioners. We thank all of the people that helped make

this process a success. Watch for new signage going up between the fall of this year

and spring of next year!

Cook County SRTS strives to improve the health of kids and our community by making

walking and bicycling to school safer, easier, and more enjoyable. In addition to

coordinating Walking School Bus days in the fall and spring, SRTS also offers the

annual bike rodeo in the spring, in-school education, and works to create safer routes

with improved pedestrian and bicyclist infrastructure, crossing guard equipment, and

community signage (“Slow Down & Smile! Kids on the Move!”).

For more information about Safe Routes to School, to volunteer, or for a Slow Down

lawn sign, contact SRTS Coordinator, Andrea Orest, at 218-877-8262 or