Media Advisory: Making It Appealing for Williamsville Students to Walk or Bike to School

Graduate students in the Department of Urban and Regional Planning in the University at Buffalo School of Architecture and Planning will hold a meeting for parents and K-8 students in the Williamsville School District from 6-7:30 p.m. today (Wednesday, Sept. 30, 2009) in the Amherst Pepsi Center, 1615 Amherst Manor Dr., to discuss how the district can be made more friendly to students who walk, bicycle, use a scooter or otherwise travel to school instead of taking buses or cars.

The meeting will help the UB students come up with a concrete plan for the district and the Town of Amherst to develop "Kid Corridors" that encourage safe pedestrian and bike transit to and from school.

"It's much healthier for the kids and reduces the carbon footprint at the same time, so it's better for the environment," say the UB planners.

The Williamsville District is participating in the federal Safe Routes to School (SRTS) program, designed to "empower communities to make walking and bicycling to school a safe and routine activity once again."

Press arrangements: Samina Raja, associate professor of urban and regional planning, and Kelly Ganczarz, onsite.