Active and Safe Routes to School pilot encourages Halton students to walk, bike or roll to class

The Halton Region Health Department and the Halton District School Board (HDSB) have launched a pilot project with eight schools across the Region to implement Walking School Buses and other Active and Safe Routes to School initiatives. The schools are: McKenzie-Smith-Bennett Public School, Acton; Alexander’s Public School and Central Public School, Burlington; Centennial Public School, Georgetown; Sam Sherratt Public School and Hawthorne Village Public School, Milton; E.J. James Public School and Maple Grove Public School, Oakville.

“Walking or biking to school with friends is a tradition worth maintaining,” said Gary Carr, Halton Regional Chair. “Active transportation gives young people a chance to get more exercise and learn key safety messages. Just as important, it offers students an opportunity to develop friendships and build a sense of self confidence and independence.”

Six of the schools are piloting Walking School Buses over the next several months. Two of the participating communities (Milton and Burlington) are launching a School Route Sign program to complement the initiative. Several of the schools will participate in International Walk to School Day in October or will promote walking routes (see attached calendar).

“The benefits of active transportation cannot be ignored,” said Dr. Bob Nosal, Halton Region’s Medical Officer of Health. “Not only are there health benefits, there are also significant environmental benefits. By reducing the number of car trips to school, Halton families participating in the pilot can take personal action to slow climate change.”

According to Canada’s Report Card on Physical Activity for Children and Youth for 2008, which this year again assigned the country a “D” in physical activity, less than half of children across Canada are regularly using active transportation to get to school. The report suggests that children are not using active transportation for a variety of reasons, including safety concerns and lack of time for parents to walk with their children to school.

The ASRTS pilot is working to address these concerns. With walking school buses, adult volunteers walk the route, picking up children along the way and taking them to school. Over the past several months, Halton District School Board and Halton Region Health Department staff worked with local transportation departments and the police to plan out safe routes at the pilot schools. “Halton police officers have walked the routes with the pilot partners to help ensure walking routes are safe,” said Halton Regional Police Chief Gary Crowell.“ Joint community partnerships such as this one are an effective way to educate children and youth about safety issues.”

“I am encouraged by the overwhelming response to the ASRTS program by the pilot school communities,” said Gillian Tuck Kutarna, Chair of Trustees, Halton District School Board. “Hopefully, our joint efforts will result in valuable lessons we can use to make active transportation the norm, rather than the exception.”

The Active and Safe Routes to School (ASRTS) program is supported by Green Communities Canada. The Halton pilot will run from September to December, 2008, concluding with an evaluation report which will provide recommendations on next steps for expansion to the other HDSB schools across the Region. The results of the pilot will be presented at a forum in March 2009. For more information, about the Active and Safe Routes to School pilot project, visit www.halton.ca/asrts or call Halton Region at 905-825-6000, toll free 1-866-4HALTON (1-866-442-5866), TTY 905-827-9833.

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