Goals and Actions

The goals of the New Jersey Department of Transportation’s Safe Routes to School program are to encourage more students to walk and bike to school where it is safe to do so and to improve the areas where it is not safe.

Your goals should be tailored to your school’s situation and needs. They should be long-term and contain specific targets as well as actions that can be taken to achieve them. Using the framework of goal, target and action, will help to focus your efforts. Examples include:

Goals

Statements about what you want to achieve.

Examples:

  • All students will have the opportunity to safely walk and bike to school.
  • Community groups, parents, businesses, and schools will participate in the implementation of the travel plan.

Targets

Milestones to help achieve goals.

Examples:

  • Repairing sidewalks by a certain date.
  • Change school policy to encourage walking and biking within one mile of the school by the end of the next school year.

Actions

Steps to be taken, input that will be needed, and assignment of responsibilities for achieving targets.

Examples:

  • Meet with municipality officials to discuss sidewalk improvements.
  • Meet with PTA to discuss the School Travel Plan.

The following forms may be helpful in organizing the goals and process of your School Travel Plan:

When developing a School Travel Plan, make sure to clearly define and identify the following:

  • The party responsible for each action.
  • A timeline for completion for each action.
  • Projects and programs already in progress.
  • Resources that might be needed (i.e. funding, staff, volunteers, etc)

School Travel Plan Toolkit