Pedestrians

DRIVE SMART Colorado Springs collaborated with School District 11 (Colorado Springs’ largest school district), the El Paso County Department of Health and Environments Adolescent Health Program, Colorado Springs Police Department, Colorado Springs Fire Department, American Medical Response, SAFE KIDS and City Traffic Engineering to create a program geared toward the middle school student focusing on pedestrian safety and injury prevention. Crossing Cool was created and was designed after the success of the DRIVE SMART High School Traffic Safety Challenge. This is a two-week student-run campaign where selected students document peers crossing the street safety or unsafely as they walk to school, parents using good or bad behaviors while dropping students off. Students then must watch a mandatory video, possibly invite other speakers to present and then do a second observation. It is hoped that at the end of the two-week campaign, more positive behaviors will be observed.

The inaugural year (2002) was a pilot program year where only District 11 schools were invited to participate. Six D-11 middle schools participated.

A pedestrian safety video was created by the City of Colorado Springs Traffic Engineering with assistance from School District 11, DRIVE SMART, American Medical Response, CSPD, CSFD and the Health Department geared towards the middle school aged child and will be used throughout the community at a variety of presentations in addition to the middle schools during the campaign.

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