How it works
A group of students walk to or from school along a planned, safe route. They are accompanied and supervised by friendly adult volunteers, often parents and whānau, who act as ‘drivers’ of the bus.
Morning walks are the most popular. Students join the bus at their home or a nearby meeting point and walk to school together. They arrive feeling energised and ready to learn.
It’s a fun, safe and active way to travel — great for students and rewarding for adults too.
Key details
Learn more
Routes vary in length with a minimum of 400m. They are typically around 1.5 km or a 30-minute walk but can be adapted to suit the local community.
We can organise safety checks of a proposed route or changes to an existing one.
A walking school bus can run on any school day but should keep to a regular schedule. It can operate as little as one day a week or up to five days, in the morning, afternoon, or both. This depends on the availability of adult volunteers.
Usually, a group of adults will share the days around to suit their own commitments.
Start times and meeting points are based on the route and the school’s start and finish times.
A walking school bus can start with:
- one adult
- students from 2 families
- one regular school day each week
- a minimum 400m walk to the school.
Walking school buses are popular with 5 to 8 year olds. At this age they are still developing their road safety skills and can benefit from walking with supervision.
Older students are also encouraged to take part. They enjoy being given responsibilities such as helping younger children, clicking bus tickets and watching for hazards.
Schools can support older students' contribution through our student leadership programme.
There is no restriction on the number of students that can be on a walking school bus. However, we strongly recommend you keep to a minimum ratio of 1 adult to 8 students.
Pre-schoolers who are walking with the bus are included in the ratio. Pre-schoolers in pushchairs are not.
Join a bus
To sign up your child for a walking school bus at their school, contact the school office or email walkingschoolbus@at.govt.nz. If you like, you can include a completed sign up form.
Start a bus or volunteer
Join a walking school bus as a volunteer. If there is not one at your school, learn how to start one.
Information and resources
Find resources for schools and information for volunteers to help keep everything running smoothly.
Benefits
The Walking School Bus is a great initiative that has many benefits for students, parents and whānau. It promotes physical activity and a healthy lifestyle and also builds community connections.
The programme makes walking to school a safer option, by having adults supervise students while they walk. It also lowers congestion — more students walking means less cars at the school gate.
By walking to school together, students have the chance to make new friends and build social skills. They'll also:
- enjoy fun, organised activities and resources
- gain a sense of independence
- learn about road safety from a pedestrian’s perspective
- develop a positive attitude towards walking
- improve their overall health
- exercise — which helps improve concentration and memory
- earn merit key tags the more often they walk.
Parents and whānau will:
- get to know families in your neighbourhood
- save on fuel costs
- enjoy regular exercise walking to school
- help the school, your child and other students
- enjoy extra free time because you're not doing drop off or pick up every day
- learn new skills from the optional workshops — for example child first aid.