WASHINGTON — If you’re driving to and from work today, look out: It’s Bike To School Day, and many children also take part by walking.
Schools are participating worldwide and all through the D.C. area.
Ideally children will walk bikes across intersections and make themselves visible to drivers, perhaps by wearing something reflective. But today, cars could be sharing the road with many youngsters unaccustomed to avoiding traffic.
Drivers are being asked to drive the speed limit and to take special care when pulling out of driveways and side streets, making turns and crossing intersections.
What Fairfax County Public Schools calls “active transportation” helps children in myriad ways, Bike To School organizers say.
Getting kids outside can lower stress and relieve symptoms of Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder. Exercise is associated with better academic performance. And when parents keep cars parked instead of driving children to and from school, that can reduce traffic congestion around schools and even help the environment by cutting down on greenhouse gases.
