GHSA and the National Road Safety Foundation awarded $25,000 to help community groups in Oregon construct a demonstration crosswalk and walking route providing a safe way for elementary students to get to school in Odell.
In 2024, GHSA, in partnership with the National Road Safety Foundation (NRSF), awarded a $25,000 grant to the Oregon Department of Transportation (ODOT), to partner with community-based organizations to develop and implement youth active transportation safety (YATS) initiatives focusing on safe walking, biking and/or scooting.
ODOT, in partnership with the state's Safe Routes to School program and Bikabout, constructed a demonstration crosswalk and walking route in Odell, Oregon, providing a safe way for elementary students to get to school. A free after-school club for 5th-8th graders was created to involve youth in the project. The club took walking and rolling adventures within a mile of the school and engaged neighbors and local businesses in the demonstration project. Once the installation was completed, the Odell Mid Valley Elementary School "Pumas" were encouraged to join a walking school bus that took this route to and from school on a daily basis.
The temporary crosswalk and crossing signage were installed on August 8. Later that month, a bike shed, (funded by a separate ODOT grant) was constructed.
The "Puma Path" was delineated using stenciled messages and paw prints. Informational banners were hung along fencing along the route.
Woom brand learning bikes were purchased to help teach students how to ride bikes properly so they could participate in bike and walk-to-school activities.
A weekly walking school bus took place on Thursday mornings with participants following the Puma Path. The walk enabled students to experience how easy and safe it is to get to school via this route and affirmed for parents and caregivers that they could allow their children to walk to school and into town.
In this short video, kids share their thoughts about the program.
Many parents commented on the community-building aspect of the walking school bus and how getting outside together was a great experience.
Approximately 100 children and their parents/caregivers participated in International Walk & Roll to School Day on October 10. The event calls attention to the benefits of children walking and bicycling to school and provides an opportunity to highlight the need for safe infrastructure.
In addition to the activities conducted at and around the school, Megan Ramey from Bikabout attended the GHSA 2024 Annual Conference and spoke about the project in a workshop attended by more than 100 safety professionals. During her presentation, she emphasized the importance of childhood mobility and the value of conducting such demonstration projects to build community support. She was also a panelist on the November 5 GHSA webinar, Showcasing Safe and Accessible Mobility Programs to Assist At-Risk Youth.
Local partners were critical to the project's success. In addition to Hood River County, which was instrumental in installing the Puma Path, multiple Hood River County School District staff members provided support. The District's Communications and Family Engagement Directors also helped promote events and translated materials. Anson's Bike Buddies constructed the bike shed over two days, and assembled bikes used by the kindergarten and fifth-grade students. Local businesses also supported the project: Oregon E-bikes donated an e-bike at cost as a raffle prize for survey respondents; Cleary and Woom Bikes and Smith Helmets provided ODOT discounts on their products; and the Diamond Fruit Company allowed the informational banners to be installed on their fence which bordered the Puma Path.
The brand-new fleet of bicycles, the shed where they are housed and the tools to keep them in good repair will enable ODOT and its partners to provide bicycle safety education for Mid Valley Elementary School students for the next decade. The two public bike fix-it stations installed at Mid Valley Elementary and Wy'East Middle School will provide a valuable resource for students in Odell who do not have access to bicycle pumps or a nearby bike shop. These fix-it stations will help instill a culture of proactive bicycle maintenance, which is critical for safe riding.
The Puma Path allowed the community to not only imagine what could be done but also fostered dialogue and a solution to the problem. A survey of caregivers found that 90.5% would like to see the Puma Path made permanent, with the remaining respondents open to the idea.
