Auburn School District No. 408
915 4th Street Northeast, Auburn, WA  98002

7/11/07

NEWS RELEASE
Auburn School District and the City of Auburn Partner to
Create a Safer Walking/Cycling Route To and From Olympic Middle School

Auburn School District and the City of Auburn have been awarded an $185,000.00 Federal Safe Routes to School grant through the Washington State Department of Transportation.

The funded project is a partnership between the district and the city to build a walking/cycling route to and from Olympic Middle School on H Street SE between 17th Street SE and 21st Street SE. Currently H Street SE is very narrow, as little as 15 feet wide in sections, and utilized by up to 30 school buses daily. The 30 elementary, 200 middle and 150 high school students who walk and cycle on H Street SE daily are forced to walk and/or cycle in the road during the winter months due to flooding of the gravel shoulder.

The grant will fund: (1) installation of a non-motorized, shared-use path adjacent to Olympic Middle School along the eastern side of H Street SE, from 17th Street SE to 21st Street SE, which will accommodate both pedestrian and bicycle travel, enabling students to safely access the school site via H Street SE; (2) installation of new crosswalks and signage at 21st Street SE and H Street SE, 17th Street SE and H Street SE, 17th Street SE and K Street SE, and H Street SE at 19th Street SE, as well as two new on-site school crosswalks; (3) installation of street and crosswalk lighting; and (4) installation of new flashing beacons on 17th and 21st Streets SE. Construction is to commence in 2008.

The grant will also fund a student and parent education component on how to utilize the new walking/cycling route, and an enforcement component including increased police presence and routine staff patrols.

For more information contact Amy Spence, public information officer, at (253) 931-4713.