A Bike Bus in Stretford where families cycle to school together is a wheely big hit so far – and there are plans to expand it.
Parents, governors and community leaders act as Ride Leaders for the initiative serving Victoria Park Junior School.
The Bike Bus, the only one of its kind in Trafford, meets every Friday morning on the regenerated Kingsway to pedal to school via the A56 Chester Road’s recently-installed cycle lanes.
It was launched in November last year with the aim of enabling a safe and fun way for families to cycle together to school. Now plans are to invite families at neighbouring St Ann’s RC Primary School to join the Bike Bus.
In a travel survey undertaken by Victoria Park Junior School, 81% of pupils said their preferred way of travelling to school would be walking, scooting or cycling.
The Bike Bus is one of a range of measures in Trafford to encourage children and families to travel actively to and from school. St Hugh of Lincoln RC Primary School, also in Stretford, has a walking bus and there are seven School Streets in the borough where motorised traffic around schools is restricted at drop-off and pick-up times.
Hannah Stanton, Ride Leader and School Street Officer at Trafford Community Collective said:
“The Bike Bus is such a great way to give families the confidence to try out cycling to school - the kids love it. This spring we'd like to invite families from St Ann's to join us too, making it a multi-school Bike Bus!"
Trafford Council and partners completed an upgraded walking, wheeling and cycle route from the M60 at Junction 7 to Talbot Road last summer, as part of a second phase of improvements funded from the Greater Manchester Mayor’s Cycling and Walking Challenge Fund.
The route is well used by commuters and students, and links in with the Council’s ambitions to provide a quality corridor to get to and from places of work, education and leisure facilities, and key public transport points in the area.
The scheme includes cycle lane bollards for safety, wider buffer strips between cycle lanes and the main road, plus better pedestrian crossings and bus stops. The traffic island between the M60 and Barton Road was also remodelled, to keep three lanes of traffic as well as a new cycle lane.
Forthcoming improvements to nearby Seymour Grove will include safer crossings, wider footways, new landscaping, and separate, walking, wheeling and cycling, funded through the City Region Sustainable Transport Settlement.
The One Trafford Partnership maintains the borough’s roads and works with the Council and Trafford Collective to organise School Streets and other active travel initiatives.
Cllr Aidan Williams, Trafford Council’s Executive Member for Climate Change, said:
“The Bike Bus is a great idea that makes the most of the new active travel-friendly street layout in the Chester Road area.
“We were delighted to see it set up and pleased to see it take off to the point that there are now plans to extend this fun and healthy initiative to children and families at another school, too. This ties in with the Council’s priories to address climate change as well as providing the best start in life for children and healthy lives for all.”
For more information contact hannah@traffordcollective.org.uk.