Today is Bike to School Day. Tressie Kamp, Statewide Multi-Model Projects Manager for the Wisconsin DOT, says participation in the national effort is up in Wisconsin, with more than 60 Wisconsin schools organizing events to promote biking as a healthy mode of transportation.
“It’s really great to able to see commitment from the different schools and the different communities that are participating,” says Kamp.
There are a number of benefits when kids ride or walk to school, including helping them towards the recommended 60 minutes of physical activity each day. “Let’s say the average student lives a 10 or 15 minute walk or bike ride from school, and they make the effort to walk or bike to school when it’s safe to do so, that gets them halfway to their goal for the day,” says Kamp.
National Bike to School Day also puts bike safety in the spotlight. In Wisconsin, five through 14-year-olds make up approximately 15 percent of the total population; however, the age group accounts for more than half of all bicycle-related injuries each year. DOT has a safety website designed just for kids.