Minister Barr: Two Belconnen primary schools to be safeguarded by dragon’s teeth
- Written by ACT Government
Released 09/12/2015
Dragon’s teeth road markings have been rolled out at Macquarie and Macgregor primary schools as a trial of safety measures on roads around local schools.
The ACT Government is committed to ensuring the safety of our children at all times – especially when they are travelling to and from school. We all need to work together on protecting our city’s children from harm.
Earlier this year, the Government announced a road safety blitz on speeding around schools – and it’s great to see further measures that help encourage drivers to slow down when approaching school zones.
Dragon’s teeth are a series of triangular road markings placed in pairs on each side of the road. They provide visual narrowing and increase the awareness of motorists as they enter school zones. The dragon’s teeth road markings are just one of the road improvements that are being rolled out as part of the Active Streets pilot program.
The Active Streets pilot program encourages parents to provide more opportunities for their children to make healthy choices about how they get to school. The program is being trialled in Macquarie, Macgregor, Latham and Mount Rogers primary schools as part of the Ride or Walk to School initiative. Active travel is a major part of Canberra’s transport future to continue to grow as a healthy and vibrant city.
“TAMS has undertaken a site analysis at each of these schools which included walking, cycling and vehicle counts, a review of the current site conditions (i.e. crossings, signage, traffic conditions), and consultation with the school community. This analysis helped identify the improvements that would be trialled to improve safety at the schools and encourage active travel. The trial will be monitored over a 12 month period to determine the effectiveness,” Minister for Territory and Municipal Services, Shane Rattenbury, said.
“The remainder of the road improvements which include a 30 km/h school zone and children’s crossing at Mount Rogers, parking safety improvements at Macgregor, a 30 km/h school zone and parking safety improvements at Latham and footpath improvements at Macquarie will be installed in the school holidays.
“Routes to these schools from nearby drop off points will also be highlighted with pavement markings that identify how many minutes and kilometres you have until you reach school,” Mr Rattenbury concluded.
“This active travel infrastructure will make it easier for students to get to school on foot, bike, scooter or skateboard,” Minister for Education, Joy Burch, said.
“Refresh your routine and try walking or riding to school for a few weeks to see if it suits your household. Active Streets is all about starting small – you don’t have to walk or ride the whole way and not every day is also ok.
“Students who actively travel to school arrive awake and alert, improving their concentration in class and ability to learn,” Ms Burch concluded.
- Statement ends -
Section: Andrew Barr, MLA | Media Releases
