More Wyndham students are set to use their school shoes for walking, with another local school joining the Active Travel program.
On Friday March 1, Werribee’s Riverwalk Primary became the latest school to join the program which aims to get more students walking or riding to and from their homes each day.
Riverwalk has joined the Junior Active Travel Leader program which will provide students with confidence and skills to run small events, promote active travel through doing and talking about it at school assemblies.
It joins the likes of Bellbridge Primary, Wyndham Vale Primary and Saltwater P-9 College in participating in the program which is operated by Wydnham council.
“Wyndham’s Active Travel program is fantastic initiative that has been embraced by the community and local schools,” said Wyndham councillor Susan McIntyre.
“There are a number of schools that are participating in Wyndham, encouraging students, their families and friends to walk, scoot and ride to school. Being active is beneficial for physical as well as mental well being while helping reduce traffic congestion and pollution.”
While the focus of the program is simply to get kids traveling to and from school via any type of physical activity, later this month there will be a particular focus on pedal powered transport.
Wyndham council is supporting a number of schools participating in Ride2School day on Friday March 22.
Among them are Riverwalk, Wyndham Vale, Dohertys Creek and Manorvale Primary Schools, Saltwater P-9 College and Nganboo Borran Specialist School.
Stickers, wrist bands and badges will be provided to actively travelling students on the day, and where possible council officers and councillors will be in attendance at the schools.
Since joining the program, some schools now have more than half their students actively traveling on a daily basis, while others have noticed parents are parking further away to create safer spaces for students walking and riding to school.
Cade Lucas.
