Study shows children walking safely
Elementary-age children walking to school in Cache Valley are safe “for the most part,” said Mike Weibel, public information officer for the Bear River Health Department.
Weibel said the Bear River SAFE KIDS Coalition (BRSKC) participated in a nationwide study with the National Safe Kids Campaign to determine the walk-ability rating for schools in Cache Valley.
Students and parents at Providence, North Park and Woodruff Elementary Schools were involved in completing a “Walkability Check” survey during International Walk to School Day on Oct. 2, 2001, BRSKC coordinator Todd Barson said.
The three schools’ ratings averaged 23.2 out of 30, Weibel said.
“According to our results, we did fairly well. There is reason to celebrate, but still room for improvement,” Barson said.
The information was passed on to principals at area schools, mayors of the various cities and members of the PTA, Barson said. So as they plan and prioritize safety measures they can use the information to improve, he said.
Parents in the Bear River district cited various hazards such as lack of sufficient sidewalks and crosswalks or traffic signals and cars driving too fast.
According to the National SAFE KIDS Web site at www.safekids.org, two-thirds of drivers nationwide speed in school zones.
The Web site also showed pedestrian injuries are the third-leading cause of unintentional injury-related deaths among children ages 5 to 14. In 1998 alone, nearly 730 children ages 14 and under died from pedestrian injuries, and in 1999 an estimated 25,000 children ages 14 and under were injured in pedestrian incidents involving motor vehicles, according to the Web site.
Barson said, “Our biggest problem in Cache Valley is lack of continuous sidewalks. Kids will start on a sidewalk then they’ll come to a field and the sidewalk will end. Some places, children will be walking along fairly busy roads because there is no other place to walk.”
The Partnership for a Walkable America established Walk to School Day in 1997 to encourage parents to walk to school with their children in an effort to promote physical activity, pedestrian safety and to become aware of the difficulties children face on their trip each day, according to the Web site.
“Children should not have to ride to school simply because walking in their neighborhood is dangerous,” Barson said. “SAFE KIDS’ goal is to make parents and the community as a whole more aware of the hazards children face and to work together to fix these problems so that children can walk to school or anywhere in their neighborhood safely.”
Information for parents about safety and tips for more pedestrian-friendly neighborhoods can be found on the SAFE KIDS Web site at www.safekids.org