<html> <body> Urban planners are increasingly aware of the importance of allowing children to travel to school under their own power, for a variety of economic, social, environmental and health reasons. The portion of children walking or bicycling to school can be considered a key indicator of community sustainability. In recent years a number of programs have developed to support non-motorized school travel, in both developed and developing countrires. Some address community design, emphasizing the value of having smaller, neighborhood schools instead of larger, more centralized schools, and the location of schools in the center of neighborhoods rather than on busy arterials and highways. Some focus on physical design, including sidewalks, crosswalks, bike paths and traffic calming on streets around schools. Some include bicycle safety education and encouragement. For information see the "School Transport Management" (<a href="http://www.vtpi.org/tdm/tdm36.htm" eudora="autourl"> http://www.vtpi.org/tdm/tdm36.htm</a> ) and "Campus Transport Management" (<a href="http://www.vtpi.org/tdm/tdm5.htm" eudora="autourl"> http://www.vtpi.org/tdm/tdm5.htm </a>) chapters of our Online TDM Encyclopedia. Best wishes, -Todd Litman Chu Wa wrote: <blockquote type=cite class=cite cite="">> > - primary school pupils want to cycle to school on their own but parents' > concerns are stopping them. > > - 90% of youngsters have bikes and more than 30% of them would like to cycle > to school, only 1% actually do > > - parents who drive their children to school risk creating a habit of > dependency that undermines children's confidence and self-reliance > > - It's a great shame children are being denied the opportunity to experience > this (cyling) independence because parents are worried about their safety on > the roads > > All above remarks from THE HERALD (UK) can be applied to Singapore directly. > I am just wondering how many cities (developing or not) are facing similar > problems? > > Chu Wa > Commuter cyclist > Father of two > > > > The full news: > <a href="http://www.theherald.co.uk/news/news/display.var.1247222.0.0.php" eudora="autourl"> http://www.theherald.co.uk/news/news/display.var.1247222.0.0.php</a> > - >   </blockquote> <x-sigsep></x-sigsep> Sincerely, Todd Alexander Litman Victoria Transport Policy Institute (<a href="http://www.vtpi.org" eudora="autourl">www.vtpi.org</a>) litman@vtpi.org Phone & Fax 250-360-1560 1250 Rudlin Street, Victoria, BC, V8V 3R7, CANADA “Efficiency - Equity - Clarity”   </body> </html>