Students throughout Alameda County will participate in International Walk and Roll to School Day on Wednesday, October 8. The annual global event encourages students to walk, bike, roll, scoot, skate, use mobility devices, ride the bus, or share a carpool to reduce traffic, improve safety and air quality, and provide a fun opportunity to exercise.
International Walk and Roll to School Day is one of many events the Alameda County Transportation Commission’s Alameda County Safe Routes to Schools (SR2S) program hosts annually to promote active and shared commutes to school. Students of all ages, caregivers, and school faculty and staff are encouraged to walk or roll to school. Those who live greater distances from school can participate by trying transit, coordinating a carpool, or parking a few blocks away and walking to school together.
“International Walk and Roll to School Day inspires students and school communities to embrace active and shared transportation options for their trip to and from school,” said SR2S Program Manager Denise Turner. “This annual celebration supports our ongoing efforts to encourage lasting changes in how families commute.”
On the morning of the event, students will report how they got to school by placing a sticker that represents their mode of transportation on their school’s International Walk and Roll to School Day mode chart. Participating schools will then submit their event data to celebrate the number of students who walked, rode bikes, skates, scooters, wheelchairs, or other mobility devices, took public transit, carpooled, or were driven to school.
The event data and highlights will be published on the SR2S website by Wednesday, October 29. This experience is designed to foster connections within schools across grade levels, encourage communities to make healthier and environmentally cleaner transportation decisions, and give students a chance to be part of an effort that reaches throughout Alameda County and beyond.
The mission of the Alameda County Transportation Commission (Alameda CTC) is to plan, fund, and deliver transportation programs and projects that expand access and improve mobility to foster a vibrant and livable Alameda County. Safe Routes to Schools provides kids and their parents with skills, encouragement, and inspiration through a range of activities, events, and lessons, while also addressing local pedestrian, bicycle, and personal safety concerns. It is funded in part by Alameda CTC with Alameda County’s local Measure BB sales tax, along with regional, state, and federal funds.
