Schools
Alexandria Students to Walk, Bike to School Wednesday
Local students will be participating in International Walk to School Day.
by Beth Lawton
Alexandria and Springfield students will take the sidewalk to school Wednesday instead of the school bus as part of International Walk (or Bike) to School Day.
The event started in Chicago in the late 1990s and is sponsored by the Partnership for a Walkable America.
More than 3,500 schools are participating in the United States alone. The goals are to raise awareness about alternative transportation, safe routes to school and the health benefits of walking or biking.
At least five schools in the Alexandria and Springfield areas are participating this year. About three dozen schools in Fairfax County, Falls Church, Vienna and Herndon are participating, and 150 schools are participating in Virginia in all.
Fairfax County Public Schools first formally endorsed the event in 2011.
The Alexandria and Springfield schools participating include Hollin Meadows, Hayfield Elementary, Lynbrook Elementary, North Springfield Elementary and Springfield Estates Elementary.
Local police are asking drivers on Wednesday to be especially cautious around schools with the expected increase in students walking, biking or even skateboarding to school that day.
Wednesday’s weather is expected to be partly cloudy with a 30 percent chance of rain. The high temperature Wednesday will be in the mid 60s.
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