National Walk & Roll to School Day Is Tomorrow: Schools Organize Walking Buses as Officials Post Route Safety Tips
WASHINGTON, Oct. 6 — National Walk & Roll to School Day takes place on Oct. 7, with schools across the country organizing group walks and rides to school, according to the National Center for Safe Routes to School, which coordinates the annual event. First held in 1997 and staged every October, the day promotes the safety, health and community value of walking to school.
Safety guidance released for the event includes scouting routes in advance and choosing streets with complete sidewalks and marked crossings; organizing a 'walking school bus,' in which one or two adults walk a fixed route on a timetable, collecting children at stops; bright clothing for walkers; and helmets and basic rules for young riders, including riding with traffic and walking bikes across streets. Drivers are asked to watch school-zone speed limits and crossings on the morning of the event.
The share of U.S. children walking to school has fallen from about 48% in 1969 to roughly one in ten in recent years, with distance and traffic concerns the main reasons. Organizers stress the day is a starting point rather than a one-off: many schools turn it into year-round walking school buses, with parent rosters and route-map templates available on the organizer's website.
Registration and participation: schools register through the organizer's website, while individual families can simply join along the published routes without registering. Student riders should check bells, brakes and tire pressure in advance. Many districts pilot temporary traffic controls at school gates during the event week, so parents who drive should allow time for detours.
Source: National Center for Safe Routes to School, annual event arrangements and safety tips.
Photo: Walk to learn — Safa Hovinen / CC BY 2.0 (via Openverse)
Published by GSM · USA (original Chinese edition)
Photo: Walk to learn — Safa Hovinen / CC BY 2.0 (via Openverse)
