The California Transportation Commission announced $56 million in grants Thursday for projects promoting bike lanes, sidewalks and safer ways to walk to school in cities throughout Southern California.

The commission will fund 25 projects in six counties. By 2020, investments in Southern California active transportation — the term used for getting around by foot or bike — are expected to reach half a billion dollars, according to the Southern California Association of Governments (SCAG).

“We have more people biking than ever before and more people walking to catch a train or transfer between a train and Lyft or other mobility service,” said Hasan Ikhrata, SCAG executive director. “Through this program we are able to invest in both the infrastructure and education that is needed to raise awareness, construct safer streets and achieve healthier communities.”

Between 2007 and 2012, bicycling increased by 70 percent in Southern California, according to SCAG. And those communities that built bike paths or added bike-sharing programs saw a greater shift from car trips to bike trips — since 2000, Santa Monica saw a 356 percent increase in the number of bicyclists, according to city officials.

Some of the larger projects include:

• Nearly $15 million for bike lanes in the booming Arts District in downtown Los Angeles.

• About $3.7 million for building a $6.5-million protected bike track on Union Street in downtown Pasadena, between Hill Street and Arroyo Parkway.

• Adding $3.2 million to a project at Union Station in downtown L.A. The project would add a raised pedestrian crossing on Alameda Street and the partial closure of Los Angeles Street to connect pedestrians from the train station to Olvera Street, the spot where Los Angeles originated. An environmental impact report on improvements to Union Station is being prepared, according to Rick Jager, a spokesman for the Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority (Metro).

• A bike track will be funded for West Willits Street in Santa Ana.

• Bike lane connections will be added at Cal State Long Beach, as well as to streets in Redlands and Highland in San Bernardino County.

• A 50-mile, multi-modal transportation corridor project for the Coachella Valley received $5.6 million.

By riding a bike or walking, the amount of harmful air emissions are reduced, helping the region come into compliance with clean air standards. Planners say the project could thin out traffic congestion on local freeways and roadways.

But others point to community health as reasons for building these projects.

For example, the city of South El Monte has the highest rate of childhood obesity of any city in Los Angeles County, with the city of El Monte not far behind, said Wes Reutimann, executive director of Bike San Gabriel Valley.

Programs in those communities also promote “walk to school” days, helping parents and students become more active, he said.

The Mountain View School District will receive $583,000 for a safe-routes-to-school program aimed at getting more students to walk to and from school.

In Pasadena, the grant fully funds the 1.5-mile Union Street bicycle track project. The money will be added to an L.A. Metro grant of $2.7 million already received, plus about $684,000 in matching funds from the city, said Fred Dock, director of transportation for the city of Pasadena.

The project — the first of its kind in Pasadena — would add eastbound and westbound bicycle lanes on the south side of Union Street. The bike lanes would be protected from vehicle traffic by a concrete curb or a median. A painted barrier would be used in locations where parking is available.

Union Street was chosen because it is a one-way street and has three lanes. Leaving two lanes for vehicles and using the third lane for the bicycle track would not impede vehicle traffic, Dock said. The city could start designing the project in June. Completion is estimated for sometime in 2020, he said.

The city is planning to complete bike lanes on Cordova Street, also an east-west roadway, started east of Lake Avenue and running to Pasadena City College. The project would add bike lanes on Cordova west of Lake Avenue to Marengo Avenue, Dock said.