Driving around Makedonitissa early in the morning or at around 1pm over the last two weeks you may have spotted groups of children and their adult escorts walking to and from the neighbourhood school.
The pupils were, until today, Friday, taking part in Cyprus` first Walking School Bus.
The initiative was organised as part of the European Active Access – Encouraging Active Travel for Short Trips to Improve Health and the Local Economy. The pilot programme, that looks set to remain among the activities of least one school in September, began at the Stylianos Lenas Third Primary School of Makedonitissa on May 23.
joined the pupils and their chaperones for part of the walk home on Wednesday.
Also adding their support to the initiative were Engomi deputy Mayor Louiza Mavrommati and municipal councillor Klailia Sourmeli – Skoteinou.
Sporting T-shirts promoting the programme, caps to shield them from the sun and fluorescent vests, the 39 participating children congregated in the main courtyard of the Primary School. Their volunteer escorts, made up mostly of employees of the University of Nicosia`s Cyprus Centre of European and International Affaires (CCEIA) but also parents and grandparents, were ready and waiting, also sporting fluorescent vests and caps.
Mavrommati said that Engomi Municipality had been pleased to be part of the effort: “We want to encourage people to leave their cars behind and walk or cycle to their corner shop to get their paper for example. They will get some exercise, conserve the environment and support their neighbourhood economy.”
According to CCEIA Environmental Officer Irene Elia, pupils in the fourth-sixth classes of the Primary School and their siblings were offered the option of taking part in the effort.
“There are now 39 pupils taking part – from the pre-primary class to the sixth year. They are divided into three groups depending on where they live,” Elia said.
Elia said that she was fairly confident the effort would continue at the same school from September but that she hoped more perents would volunteer their time to accompany the children. Discussions are also underway with the First Primary School of Makedonitissa, she said.
Stylianos Lenas School was choosen because it is located in a fairly new neighbourhood with wide pavements. “We have asked people not to park on the pavements and remove any other objects that may get in the children`s way from in front of their homes but the response has not been very good,” Mavrommati noted.
One family has embraced the initiative with all four children taking part – along with their grandmother Eleni as one of the escorts.
The eldest of the four, also called Eleni, 12, told the paper that she, 10 year-old Alexandra, eight year-old Constantinos and five and a half year-old Michalis enjoyed walking home with their friends.
Grandmother Eleni confided that, while she may have walked the children to school some mornings in the past, she would most often fetch them by car in the afternoons: “Since this programme, we have walked both ways and enjoyed it.”
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Tags: Cyprus Centre of European and International Affaires(CCEIA), cyprus guide, Cyprus Local Economy, Cyprus Sport Trips, Encouraging Active Travel, European Active Access, Improve Health in Cyprus, school bus in Cyprus, Sport Trips to Cyprus, taking part in Cyprus, Third Primary School of Makedonitissa, University of Nicosia, walking school bus cyprus