International Walk To School Day

International Walk to School Day is Wednesday, October 5, 2011.

According to Safe Kids USA, a government site devoted to helping to keep children safe, approximately 13,000 child pedestrians age 14 and younger are injured each year in crashes with motor vehicles. For the twelfth year, Safe Kids and FedEx will team up to teach school children how to be safe pedestrians as they walk to and from school.

Top walking-to-school safety tips for drivers:

  • Slow down and be especially alert in the residential neighborhoods and school zones
  • Take extra time to look for kids at intersections, on medians and on curbs
  • Enter and exit driveways and alleys slowly and carefully
  • Watch for children on and near the road in the morning and after school hours
  • Reduce any distractions inside your car so you can concentrate on the road and your surroundings. Put down your phone and don’t talk or text while driving

With drivers increasingly distracted by cell phones and other mobile devices, it is more important now than ever before that children remember to be watchful. Please, for Safety’s Sake, remind your children:

  • They should cross the street with an adult until they are at least 10 years old
  • Cross the street at corners, using traffic signals and crosswalks
  • Never run out into the streets or cross in between parked cars
  • Make sure they always walk in front of the bus where the driver can see them

Stay Safe!