Agenda - 11-07-2024; 6-b - Safe Routes to School Plan

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79 3. Public Involvement Summary On July 8, 2024, from 9:00 am to 12:00 pm, Orange County Transportation Service (OCTS) conducted a Public Engagement event with all Orange County Public Schools in accordance with the approved Scope of Work.All the principles,vice-principles, school board staff were invited to participate in an open discussion on the SRTS Program. The audience provided OCTS staff important feedback on the program, existing conditions report and potential recommendations to improve the County's SRTS plan. Key highlights from the event include: • Students continue to walk and bike along dangerous roads like NC 86 (AL Stanback Middle and New Hope Elementary), Orange Grove Road (Cedar Ridge High and Grady Brown Elementary), Richmond Road (Efland Cheeks Elementary). ♦ Increasing population is resulting in increasing impact on schools, and subsequent increase in walking and biking to/from schools. • All schools are working on transitioning to Infinite Campus (from Power School) to help improve messaging to students and parents. ♦ The Existing Conditions report was very helpful and informative to the schools. The Orange County Safe Routes to School Plan update was also presented to the Orange Unified Transportation Board (OUTBoard) on August 19, 2024 to gather more feedback.The following highlights the County's transportation advisory board feedback: ♦ Public school buses are the safest way students can get to/from school, more should be done to promote them. ♦ The plan should also establish a Safe Routes to School Champion to help implement the updated program. • Students are one of the most at-risk traveling populations, more should be done to support them, perhaps through Environmental Justice considerations. Safe Routes to School Orange County,North Carolina 77