promoting cycling

Cycling is a great way for kids to get to school! It’s possible to cycle from a much greater distance than it is to walk, so by cycling almost every child has an option to take some form of ‘active travel’ to school.

Additionally, cycling is really popular with children; 30-35% say it would be their preferred method of getting to school. Yet at the minute only 2% do so. This popularity gives us the opportunity to make a significant difference!

Ideas for the promotion of cycling:

• Cycle training – ensuring your pupils are proficient enough to use the roads whilst allaying parental fears.
• Provision of cycling route maps – get them from your School Travel Advisor.
• Promotion to parents – as with walking, it is often parents who are holding their children back.
• Setting up a ‘Cycle Train’ – like a Walking Bus, but on bikes!
• Cycle Parking – pupils won’t cycle if there’s no safe place to keep their bike. Ensure there is plenty of cycle storage in secure locations, ideally undercover and highly visible.
• Alterations to entrances – installing dropped curbs or widening pedestrian entrances make it much easier for cyclists to access the site. The installation of new pedestrian/cycle entrances can avoid cyclists having to ride all the way round the site to get access.
• Traffic calming - speed reduction on local roads can make it much safer for cyclists, and help allay parents’ safety fears.