National Ride2School Day was held on Friday 22 March, with 29 Tasmanian schools signing up to celebrate it.
Goulburn Street Primary School in Hobart was our "flagship" school for the day as it has consistently lodged high active transport counts in our database.
Students started arriving as early as 8 am to show off their decorated bikes/scooters and helmets, undertake the "slow race" and obstacle course and make a smoothie on the blender bike.
Hobart's Lord Mayor Anna Reynolds was on hand to deliver prizes to the best decorated helmet and bike/scooter.
On Ride2School Day we ask schools to conduct fun bike activities and a "hands-up count" asking all the students how they got to school that day.
Ideally, schools will then sign up to our Ride2School program which asks schools to lodge a hands-up count once a month. This way we can better track active transport trends in the school, including the impact of in-school skills and safety workshops.
Another benefit of the Ride2School program is active travel mapping. We work with schools to identify the safest routes between schools and the areas where most students live.
The Ride2School skills and safety classes are free for primary schools across the state but few schools have so far taken up the opportunity.
Ride2School is focused on giving children the skills and knowledge to ride to school more often and works with the school community to tackle other barriers to children riding more often.
With some two-thirds of Australian children not getting the one hour of recommended daily moderate exercise, programs like Ride2School are essential.
The students love Ride2School Day and the chance it gives them to ride around having fun with each other before school starts.
Giving our kids the opportunity to move more often so they can have fun and exercise every day is the ultimate goal.
