Active School Travel

Active travel to and from school encourages physical activity, improves air quality, and reduces vehicle traffic around schools. Many school catchments are well-suited for walking, rolling and cycling.

The District has a close partnership with the City of Vancouver to develop and support active travel to and from school. Initiatives include:

• School Active Travel Program
• School Streets
• Kid Commute: A Walking School Bus
• Walk Bike Roll Mini Grants Featured Projects

Here are some ideas if you want to improve active travel habits at your school:

• Find ways to celebrate walking, biking, and rolling to school. Consider participating in an organized event or campaign like HUB’s Bike to School Week, and International Walk to School Month, or create one for your school.
• Walking School Buses – Walk to school with other families in your neighbourhood. Adults can take turns walking with the kids.
• “Drive to Five” – Reduce traffic congestion at the school during pick up and drop off times. Choose a safe place to park about a 5-minute walk from your school and walk your kids the rest of the way. You can walk about 400 meters in 5 minutes.
• Bike Parking Guidelines
• Active Travel Toolkit

Active Travel Survey

The Sustainability department is conducting an active school travel survey to better understand how students and staff travel to and from school each day. The survey gathers information on transportation choices such as walking, cycling, scootering, public transit, carpooling, and by car. By collecting this data, the VSB can identify travel patterns, barriers to active transportation, and opportunities to improve safety and accessibility around schools. The results will help inform future planning, support initiatives that encourage healthy and sustainable travel habits, and guide investments in infrastructure and programs that make it easier and safer for students to choose active modes of transportation.