Council Calls for Full Boston Public Schools Participation in Safe Routes to School Program

The Council adopted a resolution offered by Councilors Pepén, FitzGerald, and Worrell, calling on Boston Public Schools (BPS) to fully enroll all 103 eligible schools in the Massachusetts Safe Routes to School (MA SRTS) Program.

The federally funded program, administered by MassDOT, provides schools with free safety education, incentive materials, programming support, and access to federal funding that helps students safely walk and bike to school. According to the resolution, enrollment requires only a brief online registration designating district contact information and comes at no cost to the school district or the City.

The resolution notes that while 58 eligible BPS schools are currently enrolled, nearly half remain outside the program, limiting access to its resources and funding opportunities. It also highlights that Boston Public Schools is the largest school district in Massachusetts not yet fully partnered with MA SRTS, while nearby communities including Cambridge, Lowell, Lynn, Fall River, and Brockton have achieved full enrollment.

Councilors recognized that expanding participation in the program supports shared goals of improving school safety, reducing vehicle-pedestrian conflicts, encouraging active transportation, and strengthening community engagement around safe travel to school.

The Council is calling on Boston Public Schools to immediately complete enrollment of all eligible schools by submitting the required district partner registration through the MassDOT Safe Routes to School partner portal.