Returning pupils able to walk or ride bike to school urged to do so
‘Robust’ safe transit measures
AS children get set to return to school, Hampshire County Council is urging those students who can to walk or cycle.
It’s part of the council’s push to get children to travel ‘actively and sustainably’ when they return to classrooms this week. To encourage more people to cycle, walk or scoot, the council has created additional walkways and cycle routes.
Leader of Hampshire County Council, Cllr Keith Mans, said: ‘Our teams have been working hard – with extra funding from government – to ensure all young people have a safe and reliable route to school and college when they start their new academic year.
‘Through the summer we’ve put in a range of temporary travel infrastructure which allows more space for cycling and walking while maintaining a safe social distance.
‘This reallocation of road space can be used by anyone walking, cycling or scooting to school and we have put in a bid for more government funding for additional schemes to build on this.’
For students for whom this is not a practical option, Cllr Mans wanted to reassure parents about the ‘robust’ procedures in place to ensure the safe transit of pupils using school transport.
Cllr Mans said: ‘I’m confident that our home to school transport service has robust arrangements in place, including new Covid-safe measures and procedures, and we have been communicating regularly with schools as we plan for the new term.
‘We’ve also been working closely with transport operators in the county to ensure there is sufficient capacity to get students back to schools and colleges where they use public transport.’
One of those operators, Stagecoach, has unveiled its measures put in place to keep pupils safe, such as dedicated student and pupil-only services, increased carrying capacity with additional school and college buses and ensuring all government social distancing guidelines are adhered to, including the wearing of face masks for children over 11.
The company has also updated its App with a ‘Busy Bus’ function and a Back to School section on its website.