National SAFE KIDS Campaign Teams With FedEx Express For International Walk to School Day

WASHINGTON, Oct. 8, 2003 -- Today, thousands of FedEx volunteers joined with the National SAFE KIDS Campaign and SAFE KIDS coalitions across the U.S. to teach students safe pedestrian behaviors, identify dangerous pedestrian hazards and work with school communities to improve environments for child pedestrians, as part of International Walk to School Day.

The celebration coincided with new research unveiled yesterday by the National SAFE KIDS Campaign and FedEx Express which revealed that nearly half of motorists are not stopping at stop signs near school zones and in residential areas across the nation, potentially endangering children as they travel to and from school each day.

Despite the fact that decreased rates of walking have contributed to a significant decline in child pedestrian deaths and injuries, pedestrian injury remains a leading cause of unintentional injury-related death among children. Each year, stop sign violations are associated with approximately 200 fatal crashes and 17,000 non-fatal injury crashes. Children are at risk of injury when stop sign and pedestrian right-of-way laws are violated.

The National SAFE KIDS Campaign and FedEx Express call upon SAFE KIDS coalitions and chapters, as well as other safety, transportation, health and environmental advocates, to work toward safer traffic environments. These actions include assessing pedestrian conditions in residential areas, participating in school-based activities like International Walk to School Day and advocating for more funding for programs such as Safe Routes to School.

International Walk to School Day is dedicated to walking to school with a purpose -- to promote physical activity, safety, health and concern for the environment. International Walk to School Day is promoted nationally by The Partnership for a Walkable America. www.walktoschool.org

The National SAFE KIDS Campaign is the first and only national nonprofit organization dedicated solely to the prevention of unintentional childhood injury -- the number one killer of children ages 14 and under. More than 300 state and local SAFE KIDS coalitions in all 50 states, the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico, comprise the Campaign.

For more information or for a copy of Stop Sign Violations Put Child Pedestrians at Risk: A National Survey of Motorist Behavior at Stop Signs in School Zones and Residential Areas, contact the National SAFE KIDS Campaign at (202) 662-0600 or visit www.safekids.org