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Take Action to Secure Stimulus Funds for Bicycle, Pedestrian, and Safe Routes Projects

From Safe Routes to School National Partnership

We are now two weeks into implementation of the economic stimulus bill, called the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA), which provides $789 billion in spending and tax cuts to stimulate the economy. Every state must spend at least 3% of the "highway and bridge" portion of their funds on Transportation Enhancements ($802 million nationwide). These funds were set aside to provide an opportunity for bicycle, pedestrian and Safe Routes to School projects. If ARRA funds are used well, states, cities, counties, and schools can create healthier communities by building sidewalks, bike lanes, and pathways.

Even though your state may have previously submitted a project list to Congress, none of the funds in ARRA were earmarked for specific projects. Since many of these lists did not include Transportation Enhancements projects, states are making decisions now on how to spend their ARRA funds for Transportation Enhancements.

Your DOT's project choices may not be a done deal!

Advocates will need to work quickly to ensure that ARRA Transportation Enhancement funds are spent on bicycle, pedestrian, and Safe Routes to School projects. Advocates should also pay attention to how the rest of the ARRA highway and bridge funds are spent-bicycle and pedestrian projects are also eligible there. You can also request that all ARRA roadway projects adhere to complete streets principles that serve all roadway users.

Time is of the essence because states and localities are moving quickly on decisions about how to spend their stimulus funds. States have 120 days to obligate half of the "highway" funds, and one year to obligate the remainder-and will lose funding if they do not meet those deadlines. Some states may program funding in several cycles.

Resources are available to help you get stimulus funding for your Safe Routes projects!

The Safe Routes to School National Partnership worked with America Bikes to develop resources to help local advocates tap into the economic stimulus funding for healthy and active transportation. Please visit our website to access:

· Frequently Asked Questions about all the types of funding included for bike/ped in the stimulus bill, in what categories, eligible uses of funding, and more.
· A sample letter and suggested talking points to help you take action at the state level and in your community to ensure that a maximum amount of stimulus funds will be used for bike/ped/SRTS/Complete Streets projects.

When you contact decision makers, ask the question, "How do we get funding to implement NAME OF PROJECT?" Now is the time to get commitments; you need to be specific with the ask. Good luck, and please keep us posted on your successes.

Contact Information for your federal Elected Officials:
To get contact information for your Members of Congress, please visit http://thenation.capwiz.com/thenation/directory/congdir.tt. Simply type in your zip code to identify your Representative and two Senators. Click on the photo of each member, then click on the "contact" tab for phone numbers.

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