When we choose active travel everyone wins; we see safer streets with reduced traffic volumes and speeds, quieter and cleaner outdoor spaces and we participate in creating community connections to support school climate action and student well-being.

Check out the full list of benefits for students who walk and wheel to and from school or the bus stop (fully or part way!):

• Benefits of Active Travel

Ready Step Roll is an Active School Travel Planning Initiative, defined as a neighbourhood-based, school catchment area planning process aimed at enabling and encouraging students to walk and wheel (bike, scooter, rollerblades, skateboard, wheelchair) fully or part-way to and from school or the school bus stop.

Active School Travel Planning initiatives have already been successfully implemented in many communities across Canada and internationally. The “International Best Practices in Regional Planning for School Travel” (Ryerson University, Toronto, April 2016), looks at a number of case studies and key outcomes from around the world.

The CRD Board Priorities and Corporate Plan identifies transportation as a key regional priority and envisions residents having access to a convenient, green and affordable multi-modal transportation network that enhances community well-being.

Helping to further this priority, the CRD works with municipalities and school communities in the CRD’s Ready Step Roll – Active School Travel Planning Initiative, to enable and encourage students to walk and wheel more often.

Actions are identified and presented in final Active School Travel Reports before being implemented collaboratively with multiple stakeholders including parents, students, school administration, school boards, transportation planners and engineers, public health agencies and law enforcement.

The CRD works collaboratively with multiple community partners to facilitate the development of individual school action plans aimed at creating equitable solutions for identified barriers to active school travel. As each school community will have unique jurisdictional considerations and service structures, there are often additional partners for individual Ready Step Roll schools that are not listed here - see Final Reports for the full list of partnerships and stakeholder consultations.

To develop plans, the CRD works alongside:

• Provincial Government Transportation Engineers and Planners
• Local Government Transportation Engineers and Planners
• School Communities
  • Principals, PACs, School Districts, Parents, Guardians and Students
• Local Community Health, Safety, Education, and Enforcement Agencies
  • ICBC, VIHA, Police, Crossing Guards, CRD Traffic Safety Commission, GoByBike, Cycling BC IRide or other local cycle education groups