Reducing the school run
Everyone agrees that things would be better
if fewer children travelled to school by car – here, we outline some of
the ways that this can be achieved
School run car usage grew by nine per cent between 1991 and 2001.
The traffic in urban areas is reduced drastically during the school
holidays – in London, for example, it falls by 10%. Everyone would
benefit if fewer children travelled to school by car: traffic would be
less congested, the air would be cleaner; noise levels would be
reduced; children would be healthier; parents’ petrol bills would be
smaller; and our contribution to the greenhouse effect would be
lessened. But how can this be achieved?
A fundamental change
A
fundamental change to the mindset of how people approach their journey
to work or to school is required. There is at present a major project
underway, organised by the charity Sustrans, which aims to do this. The
Safe Routes to Schools project is a community-led approach designed to
encourage and enable children to walk and cycle to school through a
package of practical and educational measures. The aim is to:
- encourage more people to walk and cycle to school safely;
- improve road safety and reduce child casualties;
- improve children’s health and development; and
- reduce traffic congestion and pollution.
Methods of avoiding the school run include cycling, ‘walking buses’,
and car share schemes which would cut congestion and the demand for
parking around schools.
Cycling to school
The
Safe Routes to School initiative encourages pupils to cycle to school
where appropriate. There are a number of steps that must be taken in
order for this to be as safe as possible: the first is to provide the
child with the necessary equipment. They must have a bicycle that is in
a roadworthy condition – which means that it must be:
- fitted with working lights (white at the front, steady red light at the back and a rear reflector);
- fitted with brakes to both tyres; and
- fitted with tyres that are pumped up and have sufficient tread (no bald patches).
In addition, it is recommended that the child wears:
- an approved cycle helmet – this should be in good condition, worn properly and be the right size;
- high visibility clothing (something fluorescent for riding during daylight and a reflective band for riding in the dark); and
- cycle clips around ankles to prevent trousers becoming caught in the chain.
Young cyclists’ safety depends not just on their visibility and the
roadworthiness of their bicycle – but also on their ability to manage
sometimes complex traffic situations. So the second step is that the
child must attend a bicycle training programme, preferably ‘on road’.
Some local authorities run these courses throughout the year, and they
are often delivered as part of a school’s curriculum. Alternatively the
Borough Road Safety Officer will be able to provide details of approved
cycle instructors locally. Cycle routes should be promoted when
practicable.
A school hoping to promote cycling should have a
cycle policy, which elaborates on the essential information given above
and lays ground rules for cycling to school. The least that the school
should provide is safe cycle parking in locations that can be easily
supervised. Lockers in which to store books are desirable but not
essential.
More funding for school cycle parking
Many
journeys in urban areas are extremely short: half of all journeys made
in London, for example are less than two miles – a distance easily
cycled. However, the level of cycling in London is relatively low
compared to many other European cities. Transport for London is
therefore placing a great deal of importance on encouraging children to
cycle to school, in the hope that targeting children and young people
will help to reduce the number of unnecessary short car journeys and,
with the availability of new cycle parking facilities, that cycling
will become a viable alternative to driving.
The London Cycling
Action Plan, launched in February 2004, set out bold targets including
a 200% increase in cycling by 2020. The plan aims to see 5000 new cycle
spaces installed by the end of 2005. Deputy Mayor of London Jenny
Jones, says: “The funding for cycle training and parking is giving both
children and their parents the confidence to get out of their cars and
onto their bikes. This will make the average school run less motorised,
and healthier for everyone.”
Walking buses
A
walking bus is a group of children walking in a ‘crocodile’ fashion
escorted by two or more trained adult volunteers. The adult at the
front is called the ‘driver’ and the rear adult the ‘conductor’. The
children walk to school along an approved route, collecting
‘passengers’ from designated ‘bus stops’ – this can be an agreed
landmark or the child’s home address if the bus passes their door. (It
is imperative that children are escorted by an adult at the bus stop.)
The walking bus route is set up according to where the volunteers live.
As with a conventional bus, the walking bus runs to an agreed
timetable – if the child is late then the bus cannot wait. The walking
bus coordinator keeps a register of children, a copy of which is
available for the driver each day to keep an account of the child’s
attendance. Rewards can be offered for good attendance on the bus.
As
well as providing a healthy alternative to travelling by car, the
walking bus is a good opportunity for children to socialise with pupils
from other year groups and gain valuable pedestrian skills at the same
time. The bus is highly visible as all participants are provided with
fluorescent vests. High visibility jackets may be available through
your local council, or you may have to obtain sponsorship from a local
business or shop. A trolley to carry bags is optional.
Children
who are driven to school by car can still join in a walking bus.
Parents could park near one of the bus stops and join the bus en route!
If
you’re a keen parent and are interested in setting up a walking bus,
the advice is to approach the school’s headteacher who will liaise with
the local council and road safety officers for guidance. (The Safe
Routes to School website has helpful case studies of schools with
successful walking buses.) The first stage should be to identify the
routes that parents and pupils are currently walking. This can be done
by a simple travel survey. Incorporated into the survey should be a
question asking parents if they would be prepared to be an escort
volunteer. The buses’ success will rely on having an enthusiastic
coordinator and ample volunteers. The more parent volunteers on the
route, the less time each will have to commit – The Royal Society for
Prevention of Accidents recommends a volunteer:pupil ratio of 1: 8.
School run car share
If
travelling to school by car is the only option, then there is still
scope to reduce congestion problems and pollution and to save petrol,
by organising a school run car share system. Often this is done on an
informal, ad hoc basis, but the London Borough of Bromley has recently implemented a new solution: www.bromleyschoolrun.org.
This website provides a service linking parents from the same schools
willing to share the school run with other parents. Only parents who
have children at the schools will be able to access the website, run by
www.liftshare.com. All
participants in the scheme have to pass safety checks including gaining
Criminal Records Bureau (CRB) clearance. The additional advantages of
taking part in the scheme are:
- the creation of a bespoke car share system;
- an increase in community spirit between students and parents at the school; and
- a scheme that runs itself.
www.bromleyschoolrun.org is currently being trialled in Bromley and 14 local schools across the borough are currently taking part.
School travel plans
A
school travel plan is a school-produced document covering all the
issues relevant to journeys to and from the school premises.
Essentially the plan is a statement of problems which need to be
addressed (eg health or safety concerns) and a strategy for
overcoming or reducing them by means of a number of initiatives which
will make journeys to and from school safer and healthier.
The
process of creating the plan draws together ideas and contributions
from everyone with an interest in the project – including pupils,
parents, teachers, governors, the school premises manager, local
residents, councillors, the local authority, education and transport
officers, the local police, local health authorities and public
transport operators.
Of course each school’s plan is
individually tailored to its own needs – but initiatives that a plan
might aim to set in motion will often include promotional activities,
training, better facilities, enhanced public transport services and
safety improvements to the physical environment. School travel plans
have attracted government support as they are seen as a way to help
reduce the number of unnecessary car journeys, and in addition, they
can:
- reduce congestion and increase safety around schools by means of
improving facilities for ‘alternative’ travel to school (for example by
creating additional bus bays, by increasing cycle parking provision and
by initiating ‘walking bus’ and car share schemes);
- form a basis for funding requests;
- integrate work on school travel with the Healthy Schools and Eco Schools schemes;
- make links to classroom work;
- demonstrate a school’s commitment to improving the situation – both to parents and to the local authority;
- serve as a reference point for future change; and
- provide an assurance of continuity if key individuals move on.
What schools can do
In England the Department for Education and Skills (DfES) supports and encourages schools to consider:
- developing road safety skills through practical pedestrian and cycle training;
- promoting positive behaviour by pupils on their journey to and from school;
- investigating how transport supports the extended school day;
- investigating whether staggered opening hours can allow pupils to access a wider range of school-based activities;
- providing secure cycle storage and lockers, and adequate cloakroom facilities;
- checking whether uniform and timetabling policies support walking and cycling;
- incorporating travel planning into the curriculum; and
- working with children with special educational needs to prepare them for independent travel wherever possible.
Prospective parents and students visiting a school might consider
asking the school about its school travel plan and its approach to the
points above; and in addition, looking out for:
- bus bays
- cycle racks
- cycle paths
- lockers for book storage
- evidence of a school travel plan (eg leaflets or posters displayed around the school building, highlighting the main targets and proposed actions)
Further information and resources:
www.saferoutestoschools.org.uk
– website containing further details on all information contained in
this article, together with downloadable resources and fact sheets.
Parents and teachers should log on at the Routes 2 Action section of
the website for more information and tools.
A Safer Journey to School – booklet published by the Department for Transport, available to download or read online at:
http://www.dft.gov.uk/stellent/groups/dft_susttravel/documents/page/dft_susttravel_504076.hcsp
Travelling to School: a good practice guide – booklet published by the Department for Transport, available to download or read online at: http://www.dft.gov.uk/stellent/groups/dft_control/documents/contentservertemplate/dft_index.hcst?n=9807&l=1
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