06/05/2005 - Environment
and Heritage Minister and Western Australian
Senator Ian Campbell has urged local parents
to take an environmentally friendly, healthier
mode of transport to school this morning and
participate in Walk Safely to School Day.
The national event, sponsored by the Australian
Government, encourages parents and carers
to walk to school with their primary school-aged
children instead of driving.
Senator Campbell, who often walks or rides
his bike with his children and is taking part
in today's event, said the day aimed at highlighting
the problem of childhood obesity in Australia
and the need to reduce car dependency habits
to tackle air pollution and traffic congestion.
"While busy lives make us a very car-reliant
society, we also are hooked on the convenience
of driving to a destination rather than walking,
even for short trips," he said.
"Transport accounts for 14.4 per cent
of our total national greenhouse gas emissions
and much of this is from road transportation
and the family car. If we all make an effort
to take half an hour out of a day to walk
our children to school, even occasionally,
we can play a part in reducing traffic congestion,
air pollution and greenhouse gas emissions
and we encourage a healthier, more active
lifestyle in a generation that is more likely
to spend time in front of a computer than
running around the local park.
"It also allows parents to spend valuable
time with their children, something else that
can be in short supply for busy people,"
he said.
Senator Campbell said Walk to School Safely
Day also promoted the development of road
safety skills in children.
"Children under 10 are particularly
vulnerable because they are not able to judge
speed and distance, so it is important to
ensure they always hold the hand of an adult
when crossing a road," he said.
"Our car dependence these days also
can mean the simple ‘look right and left and
right again before crossing a road' message
is not drummed into our children as it should
be. Today is a reminder that we need to make
the teaching of road safety skills a priority,"
Senator Campbell said.
The Australian Government is working with
State and local governments under its Greenhouse
Gas Abatement programme and the TravelSmart
Australia initiative to encourage less reliance
on cars.
Schools that would like to make walking safely
to school more than just a once-a-year event
can set up a Walking School Bus. The TravelSmart
web site [www.travelsmart.gov.au] provides
schools with a toolkit to help them set up
a Walking School Bus.
