Students have developed a campaign to raise awareness about the importance of passive and active safety for pedestrians.
The ideas
The role of passive safety for pedestrians (urban elements, pavements) and urbanism as shared by pedestrians and motor vehicles were our chosen road safety and mobility issues. This was the result of a poll of 80 second-grade ESO students after several other issues had been proposed (mopeds, car accidents and school transportation). The passive safety of urban elements won because the students said that the vast majority of children do not walk to school, but rather arrive in cars driven by adults.
Most of the students in the group are living in urban or peri-urban zones in modern buildings that have grown up very quickly around older town centres. The students wrote essays that they then read in class, called 'The road from my house'. They play, walk and live along this street and know it well. They investigated problems with pavements, as well as the 'traps' in them that the local council leaves after they are laid. They understand that there have been accidents in which pedestrians have fallen into ditches, wells or open electrical circuit boxes on sidewalks, and this is a cause for concern. The students took photographs and created a Movie Maker montage.
The initiatives
As part of the initiative to improve the problems identified above, the student group wrote stories about the road from home to school. They talked about how the state of pavements is deteriorating and how local councils are not improving them, while they do make improvements to roads, signage and traffic lights. They took photographs and discussed this in class. The objective was to raise awareness that only committing to road safety on fast, inner city urban routes with a heavy volume of traffic is a mistake... and forgetting that people almost always walk and require elements of passive (fences and road barriers in good condition) and active (signage and clear road markings) safety.
This campaign was conducted by children and young people, who wished to raise awareness in the politicians responsible. They wanted to say: Governments, don't forget the pedestrian and understand that walking is even more ecological and sustainable at short- or mid-distance than public transport. The group has discussed the issues, written stories and taken photographs. Some have made a short educational film. They still need to write to their mayors and the government.
