School Travel Plans - Safer Journeys to School

What is a School Travel Plan?

A School Travel Plan is a written document, which sets out the practical steps a school intends to take to address the travel and transport problems arising from the school run. The aims and objectives of the School Travel Plan should be realistic and achievable.

The School Travel Plan should been used as a living document, which is reviewed and updated annually.

More and more schools are becoming aware of the need to reduce traffic at the school site, whether through concern over children's safety at the school gate or through health and environmental concerns.

A School Travel Plan should identify a series of actions that will:

Minimise car use
Improve road safety education in schools
Seek to identify road safety measures that will make it easier and more attractive for children to walk to school
Reduce congestion and pollution around the school
Improve health, fitness and independence in children
Improve knowledge in the community
Reduce child casualties and fatalities on the roads

The measures set out in a School Travel Plan should reflect the voice of the school and the local community. The measures should be aimed towards increasing the number of pupils, parents and teachers who walk, cycle, car-share or use public transport to get to and from school; whilst educating all those involved about road safety and why these travel changes are important.

A School Travel Plan should describe the current situation at the school, including travel patterns and other information gained from the school travel survey, and set out measures and proposals to improve and encourage a change to a more sustainable travel pattern.

It is important that a School Travel Plan is monitored, reviewed and updated annually: the best way to do this is through a school travel survey, which will identify modal shifts, identify which schemes have been most effective and identify which targets are being met.

Contact

Road Safety Team

3rd Floor

Maritime House

1 Linton Road

Barking

IG11 8HG

Supported by Barking and Dagenham Direct:

Tel: 020 8215 3005

Fax: 020 8227 5184

Textphone: 020 8227 5755

Email: 3000direct@lbbd.gov.uk|