By Tracy Zafian

October was Pedestrian Safety Month, and October 9 was the International Walk, Bike, and Roll to School Day. Amherst and Pelham elementary schools joined schools around the country and state to celebrate the day by meeting up and commuting to school under their own power. Participating schools in Massachusetts registered through the statewide Safe Routes to School (SRTS) program. It was the second year that Crocker Farm, Fort River, and Wildwood Elementary Schools participated in the event and Pelham Elementary School’s first year.  

It was a beautiful, brisk fall morning. Groups organized by parent volunteers met up in different neighborhoods and biked and walked together with students to their schools. Over 150 students from more than 10 neighborhoods participated. Some groups had police escorts for safety organized by Amherst Police Sergeant Nicholas Chandler. One of the larger groups met at the South Amherst Common, and then, led by Amherst Police bike patrol officer Casey Nagle, over 20 Crocker Farm students, along with parents, biked along Shays Street to the school entrance and down the driveway to the school playground. Once they arrived, they, along with students biking and walking to school from other Crocker Farm neighborhoods, were greeted by school Principal Derek Shea, Assistant Principal Alicia Lopez, and other school staff and teachers, and offered donuts, apples, and Safe Routes to School (SRTS) stickers.  

Other large groups biked along East Pleasant St to Wildwood Elementary School, as well as down Pelham Hill Rd from Echo Hill, and up North East St from Shutesbury Rd to Fort River Elementary School. Students arriving at Fort River Elementary School were met by P.E. teacher Kaileigh Keizer, who had been including walking, biking, and rolling safety in gym class over the previous few weeks, as well as Fort River and ARPS central office staff.  

The volunteers organizing the events in Amherst and Pelham look forward to growing them in future years, and also to participating in other Safe Routes to School activities, including the Massachusetts Walk, Bike, and Roll to School Day in May 2025. The Amherst-Pelham schools are also considering offering SRTS safe walking and biking education for students using curriculum resources and support provided by the Massachusetts Safe Routes to School program.

Crocker Farm

Photos by Tracy Zafian and Judah Hughes

Fort River

Photos by Ezra Markowitz, Nicholas Reich, and Jeremy Anderson

Wildwood

Photos by Kurt Bahneman