Jackson – The California Department of Transportation, or Caltrans, announced last week that $48.5 million in new funding has been made available for 106 Safe Routes to School projects throughout the state. “Safety is Caltrans’ number one priority,” said Director Randy Iwasaki. “Nothing is more important than the safety of our children as they travel to and from school.” In March of last year, the City of Jackson became the first local city to qualify under the program and received a chunk of the $780,000 allocated for countywide improvements under the stimulus package. A local match of 10 percent is required. The first project on the list was curb, gutter and sidewalk installation from Hoffman to Mariposa Street near Argonaut High School. “It’s a great project in general and a great addition to the area near the high school,” said Jackson City Manager Mike Daly, adding: “The pavement there is in real bad shape.” He said the next project will be a reconfiguration of the intersection at Court Street and Highway 88. Many Jackson officials have stated their support for funding received through the grant and the cause it supports. Safe Routes to School is a program that encourages children to walk and bicycle to school by conducting projects and activities that work to improve safety and reduce traffic and air pollution in the vicinity of schools. California was the first state to legislate such a program with dedicated funding from the State Highway Account in 1999. According to CALTRANS, the program came partly as the result of a worrisome rise in obesity amongst children and teenagers. Thirty years ago, 60 percent of children living within a 2-mile radius of a school walked or bicycled to school. Today, that number has dropped to less than 15 percent. To date, the state program has awarded $243.5 million for safety projects, and the federal Safe Routes to Schools Program has awarded $91.5 million. Story by Alex Lane This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.