Background
The Safe Paths to School: Central Coast Walking School Bus (WSB) was started in 2004 with funding by the Central Coast Innovative Transport Solutions Fund through the Department of Infrastructure, Planning and Natural Resources.
The Walking School Bus Project was implemented as a pilot in four schools Walking School Bus (WSB) programs have been implemented in a number of Victorian and Western Australian schools and have been a huge success. In NSW Kogarah Council has also successfully implemented a WSB.
The WSB is a group of volunteers, usually parents of children who act as the “bus drivers” and walk a designated route to school, stopping at pre determined stops to pick up children along the way, and vice versa for the way home.
Creating a future with sustainable transport
By implementing the walking school bus on the Central Coast we are helping the future of innovative transport designs that do not depend on personal vehicle use for short trips.
The Central Coast experiences traffic congestion during peak periods. We as a community need to look at solutions to reduce this congestion without threatening our natural environment by increasing the number of roads and lanes.
A program that helps to reduce the number of parents driving their children to school over a distance of less than 1.5 km, promoting road safety skills for children, which they can use for life and increasing awareness of other alternative transport is exactly what we need !
It provides a safe, non-polluting, enjoyable and convenient alternative for children to travel to school with adult supervision.
Why walk to school?
There are many environmental, social and health benefits involved with the Walking School Bus:
- Reduce congestion around schools involved at start and finishing times: every child on the walking school bus is potentially one less car on the road.
- Increase the exercise, and therefore the health of children (and parent volunteers).
- Give children practical road safety experience.
- Reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
- Increase safety in school areas, through the reduction in car travel.
- Increase in street life, leading to stronger, safer communities.
- Encourages children to socialise and make new friends.