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 Pedestrian and Bicycle Safety Education Program

Bicycling in Rockville
Pedestrian, Bicyclist, and Motorist Safety Tips

What is the Pedestrian and Bicycle Safety Education Program?
The Maryland Highway Safety Office awarded Rockville over $200,000 in grant funding between 2001 and 2004 to develop and implement the Maryland Pedestrian and Bicycle Safety Education Program for elementary school children.  The City of Rockville created an Administrator’s Guide, Teacher’s Guide, and Lesson Handbook for the program between 2001 and 2002.  From initial roll-out in the fall of 2002 to the end of the 2003-04 school year, the program has reached over 7,000 Rockville students at 10 different elementary schools.  During the 2003-04 school year alone, over 250 students learned how to ride a bike for the first time.

The Maryland Pedestrian and Bicycle Safety Education Program has been made available to public and private schools, law enforcement agencies and community organizations throughout Maryland.  The Washington Area Bicyclist Association has begun to extend the reach of the program into other schools in Montgomery County and Prince George’s County.

What are Students Learning through the Program?
The Maryland Pedestrian and Bicycle Safety Education Program takes an exciting and innovative approach to teaching bicycle and pedestrian safety. It includes a series of hands-on lesson plans uniquely designed for each age group. These lessons are designed to teach kindergarten through 2nd grade students basic pedestrian concepts, such as stopping at the edge of a path or curb and looking both ways before crossing the street. The bicycle component of the safety program is geared toward 3rd through 5th grade students, who will learn safety fundamentals such as fitting a bicycle helmet, rules of the road, laws pertaining to bicyclists, and bicycle handling.

As the Program is taught in the schools, Rockville staff work with teachers and schools to revise and implement the program. Bicycle safety experts have worked in unison with participating schools to train teachers how to teach the program while the City provides a constant stream of support and evaluation. Participating schools are given an Administrator’s Guide, a Teacher’s Guide, and a Lesson Handbook with a variety of lesson plans from which to choose.

Who is Involved in the Program?
To develop the program, the City of Rockville has been working in cooperation with officials from the State Highway Safety Administration, school administrators and teachers, county and state Board of Education members, consultants with expertise in bicycle/pedestrian safety and local police.

Why is it Important for Schools to Teach Bicycle Safety?
Nationally, pedestrian and bicycle accidents are the third leading cause of injury-related deaths among children between the ages of 5 and 14. Elementary school-age children are more likely to suffer from a traffic-related pedestrian death or injury than any other age group. This is particularly true in urban areas such as Rockville where there is heavy traffic and a large amount of pedestrian activity. Despite these facts, a program has not been available for teaching bicycle and pedestrian safety in Maryland public schools until this time.