School Transport Initiatives
Hampshire County Council has launched a new home to school transport pilot scheme, with the aim of encouraging pupils out of their parents’ cars to reduce school run congestion.
At the end of February, the County Council started trialling a range of alternatives to the car, targeted at both primary and secondary schools. The pilot will run for three years and has a total budget of £1.5 million.
What does the pilot scheme involve?
There are four main elements that make up the School Travel Initiative. These are:
Yellow school buses – in the Basingstoke area
Walking and cycling initiative – in the Farnborough area
Home to school travel services – in the Waterside area
Scheduled bus services – in the Eastleigh area
What are the objectives of the pilot scheme?
To encourage pupils out of cars and find alternative methods of getting to and from school to help reduce school run congestion
To help change the attitudes and behaviour of parents and pupils by giving them the opportunity to:
get fit
reduce pollution
increase independence
improve road safety awareness
Yellow school buses
Hampshire County Council has invested in three yellow school buses operating a series of journeys in the Basingstoke area. Each bus covers two school runs in the morning and two in the evening. Schools involved in the scheme are Aldworth Science College, and its feeder primary schools (Park View Infant and Junior Schools, and Kempshott Infant and Junior Schools).They will be used for pupils who typically have to travel between one and three miles to school. During the school day, the buses will be used by young people for other purposes such as school trips.
The American style yellow buses will have regular enhanced CRB-checked drivers and will carry a striking livery. The brand new vehicles are accessible and will be fitted with seat belts and CCTV. Good communications mean that parents agree to contact a dedicated telephone number if their child is unable to travel, and that the buses are in contact with a central control point. A standard fare is charged for pupils using the yellow bus services.
Walking and cycling Initiative
In partnership with Rushmoor Borough Council, Hampshire County Council will be setting up a walking/cycling initiative in the Farnborough area.
Cycle training will be on offer under this initiative, alongside an awareness programme for pupils and parents. We will investigate providing secure cycle storage and other infrastructure, together with measures to encourage and reward more travel to school on foot or bicycle.
A series of meetings will be arranged to involve parents and pupils before launching the pilot on 21 May which is Walk to School Week.
Home to school travel services
Hampshire County Council currently provide a large number of Home to School Transport Services (HTST) or ‘School Special’ where there are groups of children entitled to transport. The aim of this new project is to open up the service to non-entitled children at a small cost, to encourage greater use of the services. Opportunities to better cater for the extended school day, after-school activities and breakfast or homework clubs will be investigated. A travel club is also being considered, offering travel to the participating schools at a standard fare with incentives and promotions for regular users. This pilot will take place in the Waterside area.
Scheduled bus services
This initiative aims to encourage greater use of local buses for journeys to school in the Eastleigh area. The project will involve ensuring that the bus timetables suit school start and finish times where possible, and that there are enough seats available at the right time. Providing information and promoting the services available will feature highly in this pilot, which will offer personalised travel planning, a web-based journey planner, and incentives for pupils who switch to the bus on a regular basis.
Local Transport Plan
All four of these initiatives fit in with the Local Transport Plan’s aim to ‘Reduce, Manage and Invest’. The introduction of the walking/cycling initiative aims to help reduce congestion on the roads. The home to school transport services in Basingstoke together with the scheduled services in Eastleigh aim to manage and make best use of the existing services that are on offer. Finally the yellow bus scheme is an opportunity for the County Council to trial a dedicated bespoke bus service to help with the problem of transport to school.
Cllr Thornber said "I'm very excited that we are working with schools, pupils and parents on these innovative pilot schemes. Through providing a better alternative for the school run, our overall aim is for children to be able to travel to school safely and conveniently, while creating a better environment and that's got to be good news for everyone."