WHAT’S A BYKE TRAIN?
A “bike train” is a long row of 10 /15 bicycles in line, led by a group of children, everyone with helmets on their head and backpack, who (one after the other) are directed towards the school. To drive and close the ranks there are, in turn, a mum or a dad.
This is a successful experiment made in Seattle (and more specifically in Thornton Creek Elementary School), where some parents have decided to challenge the traffic jam and the pollution, beginning to set a good example in terms of ecological mobility.
For kids, the bike train is an important spur to autonomy, it also improve their attention to the outside. For mothers and fathers this experience helps them to relieve anxiety by overprotection and to be less worried about the safety of their children. The advantage of a bike train is not only the reduction of time to go to school. This initiative educates children to learn about their neighborhood and move freely; it also encourages adults to establish relationships with neighbors and other families of the school, in order to give or receive help in case of need.
