Example Letter to School Board Trustee Candidate

Dear [trustee candidate name],

I am a resident of [Public/Catholic] School Board Ward [your ward], and it is very important to me that students can choose to go to school using active transportation. [I plan to have my children attend names of schools, and want them to be able to ride the X km from my home./I am a parent and have X children attending names of schools, and they get to school in what way.] I myself ride my bike [where, and how often, with kids].

Strong, healthy communities need to be people-oriented. When youth can walk or bike to school, and when parents can walk to the grocery store or bike to work or school, neighbourhoods come alive. Safe, pleasant, active and fun: good cycling infrastructure connects neighbours with each other and connects neighbourhoods across the city.

Active transportation encourages children to be healthy and engaged in their neighbourhood and schools. Obesity is a growing problem among children, and lack of physical activity is a major factor. This affects academic achievement, too. Behaviours learned in childhood tend to carry over into adulthood. This includes regular physical activity, such as cycling to school or to work.

As trustee, what would you do to make cycling more accessible for children and youth? What specific policies and programs would you change or initiate? How can staff encourage more cycling?

How would you make school zones safer for pedestrians and cyclists? What programs would you put in place to provide cycling education to young riders?

School closures make it much harder to walk or bike to school, both as a parent traveling with a student and as a student riding alone. What specific initiatives would you pursue to avoid closing schools?

What do you think of providing regular (even just once a week in the Fall and Spring), supervised, group-rides from a central meeting place to the school?

[Include personal notes about your own family's commutes or your own cycling-related issues!]

You can learn more about cycling and schools in the city, and what other candidates are saying at http://CycleEdmonton.ca. I’ll be submitting this letter and your response to the site as well.

Thank you for taking the time to respond to my letter.

Sincerely,

[your name]