Youth in Motion: WALKING SCHOOL BUS

Age Range: 5 to 12+

Today many municipalities are implementing Walking School Bus programs to provide children with a safe, fun, and healthy way to walk to school. The walking school bus concept is simple: safe and easy walking routes are established near a school and students use these routes, much like a normal bus route, to travel to school. Each route is monitored by an adult, the “route guide,” who walks the route from beginning to end to ensure that every student makes it safely to their destination. While the Walking School Bus can be a stand-alone initiative, it can also be a component of a larger
SRTS effort.

A Walking School Bus provides many benefits to the community:

• Provides activity for youth and adults
  Walking to school can provide a way for youth to meet their recommended amount of daily exercise. Also, walking in the fresh air helps to wake students up and gives them energy for the school day
• Eases traffic congestion in drop off/pick up zones
  Having fewer students being driven to school will reduce the amount of traffic on the school grounds, improving safety at drop off/pick up areas and reducing exhaust from idling cars
• Teaches road safety
  The daily walk to and from school is a perfect opportunity to teach children the rules of the road
• Promotes socialization
  Walking routes are used by students of all ages as well as adults in the community. This interaction not only fosters a stronger sense of community, it also helps to bolster students’ communication skills
• Encourages lifelong walking habits – According to the Centre for Transport Studies, even when children grow up and stop using the walking school buses, it is likely that they will choose to walk more often than if they were never exposed to the program.

Every Walking School Bus is unique to its community and there is no set standard on how it is conducted. Routes are determined when enough children are identified living in close proximity to each other that it makes sense to walk as a group to and from school. “Route Guides,” who are community volunteers, walk with the students. Each guide is assigned to a route according to personal interest and route needs. Stops are made along the way at students’ homes; students,living off the main route can join the group at a nearby location on the route. The following case studies demonstrate how two New Jersey communities have successfully launched a Walking School Bus program.