THE Rural City of Wangaratta has launched the second iteration of the Active Travel to School program, encouraging local students to walk or ride to school by activating footpaths around Wangaratta.
The initiative is part of council’s commitment to VicHealth’s Local Government Partnership Program and is part of the Building Active Communities module which spans three years and focuses on a range of community-centred modules to improve health and wellbeing.
This year council partnered with Wangaratta West Primary School to encourage students to walk or ride to school by installing student designed signage along the school’s surrounding fences and pathways.
Council's manager community services, Ben Thomas, said Wangaratta has a fantastic network of safe walking and cycling paths in the city, and it's wonderful to see this project activating these pathways to encourage more children to walk and ride to school.
"The creative messaging developed by Wangaratta West Primary students will serve as a positive reminder of the benefits of active travel for our community," he said.
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To engage students, teachers at Wangaratta West Primary School held a workshop to discuss ideas and create messaging to support safe and active travel, including kids walking, go slow and can you park somewhere else to keep kids safe.
Following the workshop, students were invited to participate in an artwork competition, which resulted in 10 winning designs.
These designs have been installed around the school’s entry and exit on Donald Street, with three applied as footpath decals and seven as fence signs.
Wangaratta West Primary School principal, Kristy Mullins, said this initiative has significantly raised awareness within the school community about the importance of continually monitoring and supporting the health and safety of students traveling to and from school.
"Many parents have already embraced this by parking further from the school to allow their children a short, active walk," she said.
"Other families are joining their children on a walk or ride, creating valuable shared time, and promoting healthy habits.
"For those who must drive, we hope they do so with extra care, ensuring a safer environment for everyone near our school grounds.”
As well as inspiring the community to embrace more active lifestyles, the initiative also aims to help reduce congestion on roads around schools.
Donald Street is particularly congested during pick-up and drop-off times due to nearby residential areas, narrow roads, and limited parking.
To better understand students' travel habits, council conducted a five-day survey from 8:30am to 9am at the Donald Street entrance.
The results showed that each day, on average, 12 students cycled to school, 18 walked, three rode scooters, and 115 travelled by car.
“It’s encouraged me to walk, ride or scoot to school because it will help Donald Street be safer for everyone coming to school," said Sophie Rickard, a student at Wangaratta West Primary School.
