School Run "Should Be Pedal Powered"

A third of Yorkshire kids are doing less than an hour's exercise daily according to cycling charity Sustrans today. They want families to ditch the car for the school run so are getting parents, pupils and teachers competing to see who can cycle or scoot to class the most. The Big Pedal contest begins today.

Paul Osborne, Sustans Regional Director for Yorkshire and The Humber, said, "Today’s children are the least physically active in history, and set to have shorter life expectancies than their parents because of this.

"Physical activity is essential for healthy growth and development; it has been shown to improve concentration and attainment at school as well as encouraging social interaction and confidence in children.

"The most effective way to tackle the physical inactivity crisis among young people is to incorporate exercise into their daily routines by cycling and scooting to school.”

"The Big Pedal is an excellent opportunity to build on the region’s appetite for cycling after the Tour de France and ahead of this year’s follow up, the Tour de Yorkshire.

"Over one million spectators say they have increased their levels of cycling since the Tour came to Yorkshire.”

"Last year over 150 schools in Yorkshire took part and made a total of 91,101 journeys to school by bike or scooter. In a survey of teachers whose schools took part in the competition, 76% said that pupils continued to cycle and scoot to school following the event."