Raytown Mayor Appointed to Safe Routes Task Force
Raytown Mayor Sue Frank Appointed to Safe Routes Task Force
Mayor Sue Frank of Raytown, MO was recently appointed to the Safe Routes to School Task Force by Secretary of Transportation Mary Peters. Mayor Frank is part of a 17-member task force formed to study and develop a strategy for advancing Safe Routes to School (SRTS) Programs nationwide.
The SRTS Program intends to create communities that are conducive to walking and biking safely to school. It was launched in August 2005 as part of the Federal transportation reauthorization legislation SAFETEA-LU. Funding is made available for various programs such as building safer street crossings and implementing programs that encourage children and their parents to walk or bike to school. The SRTS Program, aside from providing a fun, convenient and safe mode of travel to and from school, also provides important benefits to kids and their communities, such as improved health, reduced traffic congestion, better air quality, and enhanced neighborhood safety. Safe Routes to School is one of the solutions for an alarming nationwide trend of child obesity and inactivity.
The task force will serve as an advisory board to the Department of Transportation, which is responsible for the preparation of a report to Congress that describes a national strategy for advancing SRTS. Members of the task force are appointed by the Transportation Secretary upon recommendation by the Federal Highway Administration Office of Safety. They are considered leaders in health, transportation and education, including representatives of appropriate Federal, State and local agencies, and non-profit organizations.
Mayor Frank was first elected to serve Raytown in April 1999. She is a Board Member of Mid-America Regional Councils (MARC), the association of city and county governments and the Metropolitan Planning Organization of the bistate Kansas City region that develops, supports and implements SRTS programs in the communities it serves.