is tomorrow!
(Photo © J. Maus)
Tomorrow is the international Walk + Bike to School Day event and a record number of schools across Portland and Oregon will participate. 202 schools have registered for the event statewide and 63 have officially signed up to take part in Portland. Here are a few highlights of events planned around the Portland region…
Abernethy School in Southeast Portland — where 50% of the kids walk or bike school — will host their third annual Tour de Ladd event (check out our report and video from the first one). The event is a bike-a-thon where kids pedal laps on carfree streets to raise money for the school.
There will be some crowded Bike Trains rolling through several neighborhoods. Bike Train coordinator Kiel Johnson (fresh of a taping an interview in L.A. for an upcoming TV show!) has posted schedules and meet-up locations for six schools and there are likely others that aren’t on the Bike Train website yet.
The City of Beaverton has stepped up big for Walk + Bike Day this year. 17 schools in the Beaverton School District will participate, thanks in part to a $100,000 grant from ODOT they put to use for Safe Routes to Schools program this year. The BTA tells us that Findley Elementary School is expecting 600 kids to walk and bike tomorrow.
Atkinson Elementary School (SE Division and 58th) is the “media school” for the event this year. As such, Atkinson will be chock full of politicians and other notables putting their support behind getting kids out of cars and buses and onto bikes and sidewalks. Here’s a list of confirmed attendees at the Atkinson festivities:
- Mayor Adams, City of Portland
- Sue Keil, Director, PBOT
- Jason Tell, Region 1 Manager, ODOT
- Rob Sadowsky, Executive Director, BTA
- Trudy Sargent, PPS School Board member
- Captain Todd Wyatt + Office Hayes, Police Bureau
- Dr. Keith Bachman, Kaiser Permanente
- Meeky Blizzard, Rep. Blumenauer’s office
- Steph Routh, Director, Willamette Pedestrian Coalition
- Debbie Armendariz, Atkinson Principal
Keep an eye out for kids biking and walking to school tomorrow. If you see them while riding, consider flashing a smile and giving a ring of your bell for encouragement. If you see them while in your car, give them plenty of room and relax while the bike trains go by.
More info at WalknBike.org and on the City of Portland’s website.