By Tresa Carter, Director of Community Planning, BikeWalkKC
The City of Topeka is funding their plan to make walking to school safer and easier! This is an excellent example of how communities can imagine a brighter future and make a plan that's ready to roll when funding opportunities arise.
Step 1: Make a plan and get it approved
In April 2023, BikeWalkKC partnered with TOOLE Design, the City of Topeka, the Topeka Metropolitan Planning Organization, and Topeka Public Schools to assess the built environments around 14 elementary schools in Topeka, Kansas. The goal of the project was simple: audit the streets within 1 ⁄ 2-mile of each elementary school and report on the conditions of sidewalks, curb ramps, crosswalks, and other pedestrian infrastructure.
We've worked with many schools and districts who are interested in better sidewalks and safer streets for their students, but school districts can only improve the land they own, which often means the sidewalk ends at the school's property line. We were optimistic about Topeka's interest in Safe Routes to School because the school district had support from the City and the Metropolitan Planning Organization. With broader power and resources available, there was a greater chance that the plan could stretch sidewalks beyond the school yard and into neighborhoods where students live!
The resulting Safe Routes to School plan included unique recommendations for each elementary school, as well as district-wide solutions, that highlighted infrastructure challenges and suggestions for improvements. Within a year, Topeka adopted the Safe Routes to School Plan, which was an important first step towards implementation.
Step 2: Put your money where your plan is
Planning is an important first step in identifying challenges and opportunities, which leads to - ideally - an adopted plan that becomes an official guiding document. From that point, finding money to fund the projects can be an uphill battle.
But with a great plan already approved, the City of Topeka was prepared to pursue funding when the time was right. The City recently received a $25M grant to improve sidewalks in their City! As if that isn’t exciting enough, the City of Topeka is also slated to use the recent $5M Safe Streets and Roads for All (SS4A) Grant Program money they received to implement specific projects recommended in the Safe Routes to School Plan.
Step 3: Pour the cement
The final step will be actually pouring the cement and building more sidewalks and safer streets. With a great plan and solid funding in place, we're confident the City of Topeka will accomplish its Safe Routes to School goals!
Why is this so exciting?
Creating a brighter future is a long game, and it can be easy to lose sight of the goal when we're fighting mundane daily battles. Leaders get excited about a good idea and create a plan, but too often, those plans sit on a shelf waiting for funding, political will, or "just the right moment."
But the City of Topeka is not letting their Safe Routes to School Plan gather dust! BikeWalkKC celebrates the City of Topeka for not only funding the Safe Routes to School Plan, but also making strides to implement its recommendations. These new and improved sidewalks will mean more students can walk or bike to school safely and joyfully.
Tresa works as a community planner for BikeWalkKC in an attempt to make it safer and more comfortable to walk and bike. She enjoys teaching yoga and watching documentaries with her dog.
Did you know that BikeWalkKC offers community planning services? We work with government agencies, neighborhood groups, and YOU to redefine our streets as places for people. From a traveling interactive exhibition demonstrating safer streets, to a traffic-calming lending library, to professional technical assistance, BikeWalkKC's community planning team is here to support a future of connected trails, safer streets, and better sidewalks that make walking, biking, and transit the easy options. Learn more on our webpage, and get in touch with Tresa at planning@bikewalkkc.org.