The City of Charlottetown wants you to help shepherd kids cycling to school

The City of Charlottetown is hoping to get more children cycling to school next year, and is looking for adult volunteers to lead the pack.

The concept of a "bike bus" has been gaining momentum around the world, said Anna Keenan, Charlottetown's sustainable transportation officer. A community in Nova Scotia's Annapolis Valley successfully tried it this fall.

Keenan said the group nature of the bike bus could alleviate concerns parents have about the safety of sending young children to school on a bicycle. 

"That's one of the reasons the bike bus has taken off, because there is safety in numbers, there's higher visibility. You know your kid is going to be accompanied by trusted and trained volunteers who are experts in this."

Cycling P.E.I. has offered to train those volunteers, said executive director Jordan Bober.

"There are few things that are better for a city, for people's health, for climate change, for the pocketbook even, than active transportation. And there's no better way I can think of to get that culture of active transportation started than by introducing it to kids when they're young and going to school."

Charlottetown's environment and sustainability department has applied for nearly $40,000 in municipal and provincial funding to cover the cost of cargo bikes, reflective jackets, bells and safety training for volunteers.

They hope to try out bike buses this spring at one or two city schools if they can find enough volunteers keen to help. The routes will avoid busy streets, Keenan said, with the aim of expanding to more schools in the fall.

"We're not going to be riding a group of kids down University Avenue, North River Road or St. Peter's Road. But really, where most people live is those small, low-speed streets, and if you see a group of 30 kids coming towards you, you're going to slow down and stop as a driver and enjoy the parade of joy in front of you."

Travis Saunders, a kinesiology professor at UPEI, has written a letter of support for the initiative.

"Physical activity is so important for kids, for healthy growth and development, for learning. Kids who are active are healthier in basically every way.

"And active transportation is a great way for kids to be active because if you're walking or biking to school, you're guaranteed to get a good 20 to 30 minutes of activity every day."