Safe Routes to School funding in Offaly welcomed

170 schools, including four in Offaly, have been notified that they have been selected for inclusion in the first round of the Safe Routes to School (SRTS) Programme to support walking and cycling infrastructure for primary and post-primary schools. The scheme was announced in March of this year, with 932 schools (representing almost one in four schools in the state) expressing interest.

The schools selected were assessed against a range of criteria including school type, location and the school’s commitment to sustainable travel.

The successful schools in Offaly area Banagher College, Saint Rynagh's National School, also in Banagher, along with St Joseph's NS Ardan View, Tullamore and St Mary's Secondary School, Edenderry

Schools that have applied this year and who have not been included in the first round of funding will not be required to reapply as they will come into the programme on a rolling basis. There will be no additional call for schools to join the SRTS programme at this time.

The programme is funded by the Department of Transport through the National Transport Authority (NTA) and is supported by the Department of Education. An Taisce’s Green-Schools is co-ordinating the programme, while funding will be made available to local authorities which will play a key part in delivering the infrastructure along access routes and at the school gate.

The improvements to the school commute range from an upgraded footpath or new cycle lane to a complete reworking of the road outside a school’s entrance. Cycle and scooter parking will be provided to most schools that are part of the programme.

“We’re now well aware of the health benefits of child walking and cycling to school. However, safety is the reason many parents still choose to drive their children to the school door. Safer Routes to School (SRTS) is a common-sense initiative to making school travel safer and to alleviate the traffic congestion caused by school-runs. I congratulate the schools who have been award this funding today and I hope to see many more achieving it in the future,” Minister and Senator Pippa Hackett said this week.

Precise details of the works to be undertaken in and around the individual schools will be determined after a detailed assessment has been carried out by the relevant local authority.

Minister for Transport Eamon Ryan TD said: “Walking, scooting and cycling to school fosters independence, and is a healthy way for our young people to get around as well as helping us all to cut emissions and air pollution. We want to ensure they can do this in a safe way, through providing additional facilities in and close to schools. This is the first phase of the Safe Routes to School Programme which I look forward to expanding in the years ahead.”