Walk-to-School Day is Wednesday

Northfield will see a fourfold increase this year in the number of schools participating in International Walk to School Day. On Wednesday, October 8, the Northfield Middle School will celebrate the event for the second consecutive year, and this time it will be joined by the district's three elementary schools.

It promises to be a fun event for students. Not only will they get to walk with their friends, but there will be prizes and rewards as well.

The event is part of the district's Safe Routes to Schools program, which is designed to help students and communities gain the benefits from increased walking and biking. Those benefits include improved health of students, better air quality, a stronger sense of community, and reduced traffic congestion.

Northfield Middle School and elementary school students will receive maps of recommended routes (PDF file). Adult volunteers will be stationed along the routes during the morning and afternoon travel times. A Northfield police officer will be located at the intersection of Jefferson Parkway and Division St. (Hwy. 246) during both the Middle School and Bridgewater travel times. Bridgewater students who live east and northeast of the school are asked to ride the bus as usual due to concerns with that intersection.

This year there will be funding available for Walk to School Day through the Safe Routes to Schools grant that the school district and city won last winter. The $30,000 grant includes money for "encouragement" programs such as Walk to School Day.

The grant will also fund an engineering study of walking and biking routes to the district's K-8 schools. A contractor will be hired for that project soon, and the study is expected to be completed in the spring of 2009.

Forty years ago, about half of all kids walked or bicycled to school. Today, less than fifteen percent get to school that way, and half are driven to school in automobiles. Public health experts believe that reductions in physical activity are partly to blame for dramatic increases in rates of diabetes and obesity in children.

The Northfield Task Force on Nonmotorized Transportation and Northfield Public Schools are organizing the local Walk to School Day in cooperation with the City of Northfield.

In 2007, more than 2756 schools from all 50 states participated in Walk to School Day. For more information on National Walk to School Day, visit walktoschool-usa.org.