Kids can ride

Kids can ride

“Kids Can Ride” aims to promote safe cycling through professional education, awareness and practical skills development in all Tauranga City schools. It ensures the main parties are involved e.g. police, ACC, schools, Councils, NZTA. It covers all Tauranga schools and has a professional group of trained cyclists such as Vanessa Quinn, Lucy Horne led by Iris Thomas. Iris has taken time to put together a “Kids Can Ride” team of instructors that are highly rated by all ages.

Kids Can Ride has continued to develop since it first based the initial programme on the Christchurch model. The development has had school and community input and has become an integral component of Travel Safe, school travel plans and school curriculum for local schools. It has an inquiry based learning approach.

“Kids Can Ride” is very much a practical skills course which covers every Year 5/6 student and has developed to where students are assessed on an individual basis and independent of ‘minders’ in the last session. It is more real and the student is exposed to their environment to gain skills.

It was recognised, however that education is an extremely important element of any programme to encourage cycling as a safe and viable means of transport. Whilst physical improvements can provide safe facilities for the cyclist to use, it is essential that children are educated about road safety and are taught to ride defensively in their own environment.

This year once the students have completed the five modules they are given a ‘Fluoro Backpack’ with the “Someone’s Kid slogan” – safety is paramount in “Kids Can Ride” programme. Students and parents will sign a contract as part of a pilot for “Bikewise 2010” and Kids Can Ride. This sits under Travel Safe as part of school travel plans - schools are encouraged to add this to their road safety procedures and provide encouragement.  Surveys were taken with students last year to assess whether students would wear a fluoro back pack cover as opposed to a fluoro vest. The “Somebody’s Kid” fluoro backpack unanimously won.

Tauranga City Council’s “Kids Can Ride” by Iris Thomas is part of the Tauranga City’s Integrated Transport Strategy.

Success to date of the Kids Can Ride initiatives in encouraging cycling:

• Increasing competency and confidence levels of students cycling to and from school. Parents are encouraged to allow students to cycle to school.
• Students have become more aware of choosing cycle helmets and wearing fluoro backpacks
• Schools are asking for cycle lanes
• Schools are building bigger bike racks
• Schools are booking the programme ahead for the following year – it is becoming part of their curriculum Parents are taking up cycling alongside their students
• Parents taking part in kids on Feet are now walking some days and cycling other days with their children – having fun
• More active healthy communities

Further information: Algar at Sport Waitaki, halgar@sportotago.co.nz.