The Walking Bus Scheme
What is the Walking Bus?
The Walking Bus is a form of school transport. The Bus consists
of a group of children, walking with at least two adult volunteers
e.g. parents, midday supervisors or teaching assistants.
One volunteer acts as the 'driver', who leads the way, the other
acts as the 'conductor' at the back of the bus. The Walking Bus
follows a set route, stopping at agreed pick-up points of 'bus
stops' on the route.
The benefits of a Walking Bus
- It promotes social interaction and independence
- Children learn good road safety skills
- It incorporates walking into a child's daily
routine
- It reduces congestion and pollution near schools
John Clare Walking Bus 2009
Ideas to help you set up a Walking Bus:
Establish a working group
School support and volunteer enthusiasm is essential for a
successful Walking Bus scheme. The Bus benefits from a 'Walking Bus
Coordinator' such as an enthusiastic parent, teaching assistant or
parent governor, as initially it can be time consuming.
The route
The school should plot the route and proposed 'bus stops' on a
map. The route must be risk assessed by staff from Travelchoice,
who will walk the route with the school prior to the Bus
starting.
Resources
- Reflective jackets - Travelchoice can loan a starter pack
of up to 15 reflective jackts (5 adult, 10 children)
- Mobile phones(s) - essential that there is one mobile phone in
case of emergencies
- Incentives - contact Travelchoice, travelchoice@peterborough.gov.uk, for
a variety of resources(stickers, vouchers etc)
- Carloss - the Travelchoice
mascot
Why not get the Travelchoice mascot, Carloss, to visit your
school and reward the children who take part in the Walking
Bus.
Travelchoice has developed a number of documents to help you set
up your Walking Bus:
Step-by-Step Guide
To Setting Up A Walking Bus
Frequently Asked Questions
Volunteer Guidelines
Top Tips