Walking to school is a possibility that not all children have, especially due to reasons of distance or working hours. But lately school routes are being favored on foot because they carry certain benefits.
Children exercise, interact with peers, look at the environment, learn driver education ... But what about the risk of accidents? Is it higher than if they go to school by car? What does the risk depend on? Because let's not forget that these children will have to cross streets with traffic and there may be abuses.
A study prepared in Toronto (Canada) indicates that the risk of accidents going to school (more specifically, motor vehicle collisions with pedestrians) is not related so much to the fact of walking but to the characteristics of the roads that are traveled.
This is: if the streets are well signposted, there are the necessary traffic lights and zebra crossings, traffic is regulated (and the drivers respect the rules) ... Then the chances of a run over are reduced.
That is why many town halls have been put in place to favor safe walking school routes. Applications are even projected to carry out safe routes to school.
I think that those roads to school should be safer and that can also be improved in other ways (which is already done in many places).
For example, the fact that children share a companion to take care of their safety favors that many parents for whom the car was the only option decide to make walking routes. The early rises and the rush at home (which in turn are bad travel companions by car) may be reduced.
Definitely, we would love that the public road was safer so that going to school on foot also forced itto. Also that the rest of the people (drivers, pedestrians, merchants ...) understood the importance of following the rules and respecting school roads as necessary and safe routes.
