Courtesy of PedNet Coalition

Ever see a school bus with feet? In some communities, school buses with wheels are being replaced by “school buses” powered by pairs of walking feet!

It’s called the walking school bus. Adult volunteers walk with students along a route to school. More students join the group at stops along the way. Here are some of the benefits of the program.

Safety. Walking in a group is safer than walking alone. Adults make sure automobile drivers on the road see the group and that the kids understand safety rules. More walkers mean fewer cars on the road, which helps make roads safer. Safety is the goal of the walking school bus system in Somerville, N.J. says Susan Haynes, principal of Van Derveer Elementary School. The school district started the walking bus program seven years ago when it lost its school bus program. “You have 800 students and you have to figure out how to have them arriving and departing safely from school,” Haynes explains. She notes that since the walking school bus has hit their streets, community members seem more respectful of pedestrians.

Courtesy of the Johnson Family

Fun. “In the morning, I get to hang out with my friends and talk with them,” says Maddie H., a fifth grader who walks in a group to her elementary school in Columbia, Mo. On her route, students’ dogs also trot along on the “school bus”! Parents like the walking school bus system because they can spend extra time with their kids—and get to know one other. “It allows parents to walk together and share the experience of raising kids,” says Haynes. Lanny J., 11, and his sister asked their mom if they could join the walking school bus that passed by their Columbia, Mo., house each day while they waited for their bus. They joined the group last spring. “It’s a great way to get pumped up for the school day,” says Lanny’s mom, Jackie.

Fitness. The walking buses help kids get exercise. Walking is a great way for people of all ages to exercise. “A healthy body is a healthy mind,” notes Haynes. “The kids are getting exercise and burning off nervous energy before school,” says Maddie’s dad, Chris, who leads the walking school bus route in their neighborhood. “’Recess before school’ is how one kid on our route describes it.” Maddie’s route is a little less than a mile each way. Walking to school is a simple way for kids to fit in the daily recommended amount of exercise—a minimum of thirty minutes.

Cleaner air. Walking to school has benefits for the planet. More walkers mean less air pollution from vehicles, whether driving or idling. Haynes credits the program as “the easiest way to go green” for school districts.

Want to try a walking school bus in your community? Visit the National Center for Safe Routes to School.

Courtesy of PedNet Coaltion

Portions of this article were previously published in Current Health 1, September 2009. ©2009, 2010, Weekly Reader Corporation.