Travel and traffic
“By 2020 the government would like all schools to be models of sustainable travel, where vehicles are used only when absolutely necessary and where there are exemplary facilities for healthier, less polluting or less dangerous modes of transport.”
By finding sustainable alternatives to cars for the school run, which account for 16 per cent of early morning traffic, schools are conserving energy, reducing air pollution, contributing to local well-being and addressing the ‘being healthy’ and ‘staying safe’ outcomes for children under Every Child Matters (ECM).
talk2learn travel and traffic discussion
Read the recent talk2learn discussion about how to make travelling to school more sustainable. Major topics of the discussion included:
- Can anyone tell me about a successful cycle to work scheme that has worked in their school? We are a BSF school and so the agenda is very clear - there will not be enough parking spaces for each staff member to bring a car - yet the cycle to work scheme does not seem to 'fit' with schools.
- Has anyone else come up against this stumbling block? We have arranged a Park and Stride Scheme and parents are keen, but have to cross a busy road. Local council are against a pelican or zebra crossing, as there has not been a fatality. The consequence is that few are taking up the Park and Stride Scheme because of the difficulty of crossing the road. What can be done?
Top tips on making your school a model of sustainable travel
- Distribute leadership responsibilities by appointing a travel and traffic co-ordinator with specific responsibility for raising awareness and creating alternative travel-to-school plans that form the school’s travel policy.
- Think about how you can communicate the need for change to the whole school community, perhaps through organising a themed alternative travel day or developing an information leaflet about alternatives to car travel.
- Work with staff, pupils and parents to compile a travel-to-school survey from which to audit your current position and calculate your school travel carbon footprint.
- Consider introducing a rewards scheme for students who use alternatives to car travel or who car share.
- Enlist the help of parents in drawing up a ‘walking bus’ route and timetable that works for them, raising funds for cycle racks so that pupils can store their bicycles during the school day, and promoting car sharing and public transport.
- Consider CPD for staff to help them address travel and traffic issues through the curriculum, not forgetting the importance of staff ‘walking the talk’ themselves.
Schools focusing on travel and traffic
