Let your FEET do the walking!

To mark the beginning of Walk to School Week 2008, Conor Murphy visited Fane Street Primary School in South Belfast, a local school actively promoting sustainable transport.

The minister said:“At peak morning rush hour approximately 20% of cars are on the school run, significantly adding to congestion on our local roads and many of these car journeys are within reasonable walking distance. With many schools being located in or near residential areas this also has a knock on effect on congestion affecting local communities.

“With growing congestion at the school gates and car commuters feeling the pressure of rising fuel prices, I would urge all schools to consider the important role that education has to play in delivering a clear message in support of sustainability.”

Schools are being encouraged to use this year’s Walk to School theme of ‘Saving The Planet – One Step at a Time’ to organise their own special events and explore their surrounding environment on the school journey.

The WOW! initiative has been developed by Travelwise NI and trialled in over 100 primary and post primary schools. It is now available to every school and uses colourful posters, interactive daily charts and certificates to get pupils actively involved in walking and cycling to help address the problems caused by the ‘school run.’ The minister expressed his hopes that schools registering for Walk to School Week will also participate in the new WOW! Initiative.

Fane Street Primary School Principal Stephen Orr said that the school was actively involved in encouraging more parents and pupils to walk safely to and from the school and that classroom based education initiatives greatly assisted in raising pupil awareness on the importance of sustainable transport:

“Our school, like many others, is situated in a densely populated residential area and many of our 168 pupils live within walking distance. I am pleased that so many of our parents already escort their children on the walk to and from school and this new WOW! Initiative will help to reinforce the benefits of walking and cycling and hopefully encourage even more parents to leave the car at home,” said Mr Orr.

“As well as the obvious positive environmental outcomes, walking to school regularly has a range of benefits for the school including: increasing pupil alertness in the classroom, cutting congestion at school gates, improving pupils’ physical fitness levels; developing valuable road safety skills and levels of independence.”

“I would encourage other schools across Northern Ireland in a similar situation as us to look at more environmentally friendly ways of travelling to school and bringing this important sustainability message into the classroom.”

For more information on Travelwise NI schools initiatives including WOW! and Walk to School Week, or to register participation tel. 0845 378 0908 or visit www.travelwiseni.com.