Parents are not refusing to walk. They are asking for a safe route.
When a district expands its walk zone, the trip to school does not go away. It lands on families overnight. Here is what families told us, and the funding that can build the routes they are asking for.
The barrier is the route, and families can name it.
We surveyed families in one district of about 2,500 students after bus service was pulled back toward the state minimum. More than 100 families answered.
Barriers to letting their child walk or bike to school
Source: Go Together K-12 family transportation survey, one district. Results are early and directional.
The budget line moves. The trip to school does not.
Most families are not a short walk away
Nearly 8 in 10 families in the survey live a mile or more from school.
Sidewalks change the answer
64% said better sidewalks would make them more willing to let their child walk or bike.
So do safer crossings
60% said the same about safer crossings. Families are telling districts what would work.
Your district can apply for federal dollars to build safe routes.
The federal Transportation Alternatives Program pays for sidewalks, crossings, and Safe Routes to School planning. School districts are named in federal law as eligible applicants. The dollars flow through your state department of transportation and your regional planning agency.
States let nearly $70 million of this funding expire unspent between 2013 and 2021. Today communities request four dollars for every one available. A district that never applies leaves its share for someone else.
Name an owner
Decide who in your district owns the Transportation Alternatives application. Without an owner, no application gets written.
Call your state contact
Every state has a Safe Routes to School or Transportation Alternatives contact who can explain deadlines and local match rules.
Bring evidence
Family survey data shows exactly where routes fail. It turns a request for sidewalks into a documented need.
Free resources from the Safe Routes Partnership: Find funding · State contacts · 2026 state report cards
Look at Minnesota.
Minnesota state law created its own Safe Routes to School program on top of the federal dollars. The state transportation department funds planning help, district coordinators, and infrastructure grants with no local match.
Minnesota scored among the top four states in the Safe Routes Partnership 2026 state report cards. See how Minnesota funds Safe Routes to School.
Sidewalks do not get built in a semester. Families need a safe trip on Monday.
No single mode gets every student to school. Districts need the bus, safe walking and biking routes, and school-approved carpools working together.
The bus
Focused on the students and routes that need it most.
Walking and biking
On routes families trust, built with the funding your district is eligible for.
School-approved carpools
In the same survey, 69% of families had considered carpooling and only 10% were doing it. On Go Together, every parent is approved by their school.
Find out what your families need.
Get a free family transportation survey tailored to your district or school, with a board-ready report you can use in a funding application.