Counter Cantor — Support Safe Routes To Schools

House Republican Whip Eric Cantor (R-VA) has targeted the federal Safe Routes to School program established under the 2005 Federal Surface Transportation Bill (SAFETEA-LU) as wasteful government spending in his weekly “YouCut program”.

Each week representative Cantor asks people to vote for which of five options they would cut from the federal budget. Republicans then hold a floor vote in the House of Representatives to try to eliminate the program that gets the most votes.

This week, the federal Safe Routes to School program is one of Rep. Cantor’s targets. He argues that SRTS duplicates other bicycling and walking programs, and that bicycling and walking infrastructure is a local government responsibility. We need your help making sure that Members of Congress understand the value of Safe Routes to School and support it.

Safe Routes to School is a critical Federal program because, like education itself and like kids’ health and nutrition needs, the safety and well-being of getting our children to and from school is a national priority and has been dramatically overlooked by state Departments of Transportation for decades. The fact that the SRTS money is massively oversubscribed in every state makes it very clear there’s a need and that it won’t happen without Federal leadership

Are we seeing a preview of more attacks to come on bicycling and walking programs? We might be if Cantor thinks he can get away with it. Please take a few minutes to send a message to your Member of Congress to ask them to vote against any effort to cut Safe Routes to School.

Go here to make your voice heard: http://www.capwiz.com/lab/issues/alert/?alertid=15141271&type=TA

If Cantor is you representative, go here: http://www.capwiz.com/lab/callalert/index.tt?alertid=15140561&type=TA