Walk to School Day coming up

Want to improve your health and advise Monterey on how to make safer routes for students to walk and bike?

Take part of "Walk to School Day" on Oct. 3 -- although Monterey's making a week out of it.

 Monterey city officials are sponsoring a week-long event to promote pedestrian safety and the enviromental benefits of walking for students who attend Colton School.

Currently, most students arrive at Colton by school bus, MST bus or car. During "Walkt to School" week, students will be encouraged to walk from home or “Drop-off and Walk” locations approximately one mile from the school. Those who bus to school will be allowed to count their walk from home to the bus stop.

Healthy snacks and water will be provided each morning to those who participate. Students who walk all or most days will receive special prizes such as gift certificates to local eateries, movie theaters, laser tag, miniature golf and the iTunes store.

The Physical Education class with the most collective days and miles walked at the end of the week will be rewarded with a class party. Some of the barriers to walking and bicycling to Colton and other schools in the area are the steep topography, distance, pedestrian infrastructure near the school and lack of adult supervision on campus before first period.

The week-long experiment will result in recommended new pathways and solutions to be included in a citywide bicycle, pedestrian and transit plan called "Monterey on the Move."

But Monterey is not the only city participating.

There are four schools in Seaside signed up (Seaside Middle, Martin Luther King, Ord Terrace and Del Rey Woods) and who knows how many more I haven't seen. So let me know!