The Walking Bus

The walking bus is the latest safe, fun and healthy way to travel to and from school.  Each walking bus had an adult 'driver' at the front and and an adult 'conductor' bringing up the rear. The children walk to school in a group along a set route picking up additional 'passengers' at specific 'bus-stops' along the way.

The bus runs rain or shine and everyone wears a reflective jacket. Along the way children can chat to their friends, learn valuable road safety skills and gain some independence.

A walking bus at your school could be set up to match the availability of the volunteers.

The Walking Bus - Why use it?

 The walking bus provides a chance for everyone to take part in regular exercise. Evidence shows that more active children are likely to become more active adults.

"Just a 15 minute journey to and from school can contribute to half the daily recommended exercise for children"   A safer Journey to School, the Pedestrians Society, 2000.

Children who walk to school on a walking bus are part of a large and visible group which is supervised by adults and seen safely into school. This reassures parents who are concerned about letting their children walk on their own.

The walking bus helps children learn pedestrian skills so that when they begin to walk on their own they are better equipped to deal with traffic.  The journey to school gives children a chance to talk and make new friends, when they've arrived at school they've done their chatting and are more ready to learn.  Every journey made on foot helps reduce the amount of traffic around schools, which will help reduce air pollution and improve our local environment for everyone.  Did you know that research has proved that if you make a short journey in a car, you are exposed to more air pollution than if you walk! By using a walking bus, children will have fresh air to wake them up, before settling down to work in class.

Our Questions & Answers sheet (pdf) answers some of the most frequently asked questions and our procedure for setting up a walking bus guide (pdf) will give you a better idea of the running of it and contains the consent form.  If you have any more questions that you would like to ask, you can contact our Road Safety Officer, Yvonne O'Reilly at (057) 8664022.