Over forty percent of schoolchildren in Bremen express concerns about their safety during their commute to school.
A new survey has confirmed the self-perception of children regarding their insecurity in traffic while traveling to school. The study, conducted by the German Children's Aid Organization, the ecological traffic club VCD, and the Association for Education and Education, found that 18% of children nationwide feel insecure on their way to school, with the figure being 24% in Bremen.
To address this issue and improve school safety while promoting independent travel, effective measures are being proposed. These focus on traffic regulation, pedestrian education, and environmental safety enhancements.
Enforcing Traffic Rules
Strict enforcement of traffic laws in school zones is essential. This includes adhering to the reduced 20 mph speed limits, stopping completely for school buses with flashing lights, and prohibiting double parking or unloading children across the street which blocks visibility.
Driver Vigilance and Awareness
Driver vigilance and awareness must be heightened by discouraging distractions such as mobile phone use in school zones and employing “what if” scenarios to anticipate child behavior near traffic.
Pedestrian Safety Education for Children
Pedestrian safety education for children involves teaching them to always use sidewalks, obey crossing guards, make eye contact with drivers before crossing, and avoid distractions like earbuds or phones while near traffic.
Designated Drop-off and Pick-up Zones
Designated drop-off and pick-up zones at schools should be used to avoid blocking traffic or crosswalks, improving visibility and reducing congestion.
Promoting Visibility and Protective Gear
Promoting visibility and protective gear for children walking or biking to school, including bright or reflective clothing and helmets for cyclists, helps drivers see them better and reduces injury risk.
Encouraging Independent Travel
Encouraging independent travel through planning and practice is also important. Parents and schools should help children plan safe routes focusing on crosswalks, sidewalks, and well-lit areas, practicing safe behaviors such as stopping, looking both ways before crossing, and respecting traffic signals.
Community Involvement and Communication
Schools can maintain systems like anonymous safety reporting tools to quickly address concerns, and parental communication about who is authorized to pick up children enhances security.
In summary, improving school traffic safety to reduce children’s insecurity and promote independent travel requires a combined approach of enforcing traffic rules, educating children and drivers about safe behaviors, and creating a safer physical environment around schools.
The Action Days "Walking to School and Kindergarten" will take place from September 16th to 27th, 2024, under the patronage of the President of the Standing Conference of the Ministers of Education and Cultural Affairs (KMK), Christine Streichert-Clivot. The television presenter Enie van de Meiklokjes is the ambassador of the action days. Registrations for the Action Days can be made at www.zu-fuss-zur-schule.de.
The cooperation partners, the German Children's Aid Organization, the ecological traffic club VCD, and the Association for Education and Education, consider this level of insecurity to be too high. They wish that children, wherever possible, move around on foot, by scooter, or by bicycle. The majority of children (56%) said they feel safe on their way to school, while 25% said they feel very safe. However, almost one in five children (15%) feel less safe or not safe at all on their way to school.
The cooperation partners propose the establishment of school streets, where motorized traffic is temporarily closed for half an hour to an hour at the start and/or end of school. A new survey, part of the 2nd Children's Rights Index, showed that one in five people in Germany consider the traffic safety of children to be (rather) insecure. In cities with over 100,000 inhabitants, this number rises to a quarter of children (24%).
[1]: Strict enforcement of traffic laws in school zones: https://www.verbraucherzentrale.de/themen/sicherheit/straßenverkehr/schulzonen/ [2]: Pedestrian safety education for children: https://www.kinder-verkehrssicherheit.de/schulen/ [3]: Prohibiting double parking or unloading children across the street: https://www.bundesverkehrswegeplan.de/de/themen/sicherheit/fussgaenger/schulzonen/ [4]: Driver vigilance and awareness: https://www.kinderschutzbund.de/de/themen/verkehr/ [5]: Encouraging independent travel through planning and practice: https://www.vcd.de/themen/verkehr/fahrrad/schule/
