Bike to School Day

http://www.walkbiketoschool.org/learn-more/why-walkbike/

NovoaGlobal supports Bike to School Day and asks everyone to slow down and be attentive in school zones every day. While we encourage biking to school and the physical, mental and financial benefits to the children and community, we also know biking to school can be dangerous. 

Promoting Safety

In 2009, 203,000 children ages 15 and younger were injured in motor vehicles crashes; 15,000 of those injured were pedestrians (NHTSA, 2011). Priority must be placed on making it possible for everyone to walk safely, especially in neighborhoods and school zones.

To reduce the risk of injury:

• Children and adults need to learn safe walking and bicycling skills.
• Drivers need to watch for others using the road.
• Safety problems along routes to school need to be fixed.

Some of the best ways to increase the safety of a child’s walking or biking trip to school are to:

• Provide safe, well-maintained walkways separate from vehicles.
• Teach children to cross streets at marked crossings and to always look left-right-left.
• Slow traffic in neighborhoods and near schools through traffic calming strategies and enforcement efforts.
• Work with parents of children with disabilities and special education professionals to identify accessibility barriers.
• Ensure that walkways are continuous and meet national accessibility standards.
• Install curb ramps at every intersection and at mid-block crossings.
• Provide accessible pedestrian signals at intersections.