Santa Monica-Malibu Unified School District (SMMUSD) students and staff biked, scooted, skateboarded and walked to school for Bike It! Walk It! Week on October 7-10.
Bike It! Walk It! encourages school students and staff to leave the car at home and utilize other modes of transportation, including carpooling and riding the bus.
A record 36 percent of District students at 15 different schools participated in the event. With over 4,000 students arriving at school car-free, the event avoided more than 12,000 car trips by parents.
This year’s Bike It! Walk It! week included a Bike Parade, including mobile music and pedicab, from Clover Park to Grant and Will Rogers Learning Center. Elementary school participation rates ranged from 40-63 percent, including Point Dume Marine Science School, McKinley ES, Franklin ES, Grant ES, Roosevelt ES, Will Rogers Learning Center, and Santa Monica Alternative School House/Muir ES. Edison Language Academy, Juan Cabrillo ES and Lincoln Preschool also participated. Lincoln Middle School participation topped 52 percent, with John Adams Middle School, Olympic and Malibu High also participating.
Santa Monica High School held a special Bike It! Day 10th Birthday Celebration, marking 10 years of environmental activism by Samohi Solar Alliance, who organized the first Bike It! Days in 2007. Club founder Molly Strauss (Samohi ’06 Harvard ’10) and Bike It! Day founder Rachel Horn (Samohi ’08, UC Berkeley ’12) were on hand to applaud the group’s achievements.
This year’s motto is “Bike It! Walk It! Every Week!” Students, staff and parents are encouraged to continue walk, bike, scoot, skate or take the bus at least one “car-free” day per week.
Bike It! Walk It! and Safe Routes to School programs are a partnership between the City of Santa Monica, the District, and the Parent Teacher Association to reduce traffic congestion near schools and promote health, safety, environmental, and community benefits.
