Press Release  MassDOT Announces 2025-2026 Safe Routes to School Signs and Lines Program Awardees

BOSTON — The Massachusetts Department of Transportation (MassDOT), through its Safe Routes to School (SRTS) Program, is pleased to announce the awardees of their 2025-2026 Signs and Lines Program. The SRTS Signs and Lines Program provides design services and up to $10,000 in construction funding for up to five municipalities for low-cost infrastructure projects around public elementary, middle, and high schools. Eligible low-cost projects include signage and pavement markings to improve safety and accessibility along key walking and biking routes to a school.

“Education is a right and ensuring that our youth, their families and educators can safely get to and from school is an investment in our future.  This grant funding will enable municipalities and schools to make upgrades that create more reliable and accessible routes for everyone,” said Interim MassDOT Secretary and MBTA General Manager and CEO Phillip Eng.  “Under the leadership of the Healey-Driscoll Administration, we are prioritizing safety and education as the foundation to improve quality of life for the communities we serve across the state.”

“The Safe Routes to School program builds safer communities and empowers students to walk, bike, and roll to school with confidence,” said Undersecretary and State Highway Administrator Jonathan Gulliver.  “The Signs and Lines program makes travel to school more welcoming, more predictable, and more accessible for communities across the Commonwealth.”

The application period opened on September 3, and all applications were due on October 3. All SRTS partner schools (that have been a partner for at least six months as of 9/3/25) were encouraged to apply. The projects are intended to be completed no later than June 30, 2026, and within the current school year. The five schools/communities selected this year are as follows:

• Alcott Elementary School, Concord
• Guilmette Elementary and Middle School, Lawrence
• B.F. Butler Middle School, Lowell
• Washington S.T.E.M. Community School, Lynn
• Jenkins Elementary School, Scituate

This was the seventh round of Signs and Lines projects, not including the successful pilot project in Lawrence during the 2018-2019 school year. The Signs and Lines pilot project at the Community Day Arlington Elementary and Arlington Middle School was completed in June of 2019, and included new crosswalks, signage, and an improved arrival/dismissal circulation plan. Since then, over 20 additional communities have been able to better connect schools with rail trails, increase pedestrian visibility, and improve school zone signage.

The Massachusetts SRTS Program, sponsored by MassDOT and with funds from the Federal Highway Administration, promotes safer routes for students to actively get to and from school by fostering partnerships between community-led organizations, local law enforcement, education leaders, and public health departments. The program currently serves more than 1,200 schools in more than 280 communities across the Commonwealth. Through these partnerships, the Massachusetts SRTS Program highlights the importance of pedestrian and bicycle safety. SRTS also provides information, materials, and resources to support schools and communities with their local SRTS initiatives. 

For questions related to the Signs and Lines Program, email SRTS@dot.state.ma.us. You can also visit Safe Routes To School - Engineering | Mass.gov.  

###