School safety experts provide guidance for new school year

As the new school year approaches, experts are providing guidance to ensure the safety of students commuting to school. In North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany, approximately 170,000 children are preparing for the start of classes on September 2.

ADAC traffic experts recommend that parents practice the school route with their children multiple times before the term begins. They suggest choosing routes with fewer hazards, even if they are slightly longer, and performing role reversals where the child leads the way to demonstrate their understanding of safety measures. Using reflectors on backpacks is also highlighted as a critical safety step, as they increase visibility up to 140 meters compared to only 25 meters for dark clothing.

In Austria, traffic psychologist Patricia Prunner from ARBÖ emphasizes that safety routines require six to ten repetitions to become effective. Statistics from Austria indicate that school route accidents are a significant concern, with 85 accidents involving 91 injured children reported in Lower Austria in the previous year. Experts advise that children, who often have a limited field of vision and struggle to judge speed and distance, benefit greatly from supervised group walking, such as “walking buses.”