Car-Free Day / Traffic Survey Report

21st September 2007

As part of European Mobility week a Car-Free Day and Traffic Survey was organised in Blackrock College on Friday, 21st September 2007, by the Blackrock College Green-Schools Committee.

Click here to view photos of the Traffic Survey

AIMS
The aim of the day was to promote awareness of: “European Mobility Week”, The Blackrock College Green Schools Committee, reducing car emissions and the health and fitness benefits of walking all or part of the way to school.

Another major aim of the Car Free Day and Traffic survey was to encourage people to change their habit of driving everywhere to using public transport, walking or cycling.

The final aim of the Car-Free Day and Traffic Survey was to fulfil our community involvement necessary to achieve a Green Flag for the School.

ADVERTISEMENT
The Car-Free Day and Traffic Survey were advertised in a number of ways. A3 posters were put up around the school. Text messages were sent to most parents using the schools new text messaging system. Information about the day was also available on both the school website (www.blackrockcollege.ie) and the Green-Schools Committee website (www.rockty.com/greenschools/carfree.html). Announcements about the Car-Free Day were also made to the students at year assemblies, and to the parents at lectures they attended. 

PREPARATION
When we began organising the Car Free Day we knew that there would be people who either wouldn’t be able to leave the car at home for one reason or another so we approached Brian Mooney the manager in Frascati. He very kindly agreed to provide Free Parking for parents between 8.00-9.15am. This meant that people who didn’t live near public transport could still participate in the Car-Free Day by walking from the Frascati car park to Blackrock and Willow Park.

We also knew that there would be a number of people who wouldn’t be bothered making the effort of taking public transport or walking all or part of the way to school so we decided to compose a survey. The idea behind the survey was to, through the questions asked (see below), make people take a minute to think do they really need to drive everywhere, could they walk or use public transport more often, about the benefits to the environment of doing this and about the health benefits of walking to school.

SURVEY QUESTIONS
The questions we asked each driver that drove into the school were:
Do you know this is European Mobility week?
Do you drive your son to school always, sometimes or rarely?
Could your son use public transport?
(If “With Difficulty” or “No”) Do you mind if I ask what general area you live in?
Could your son walk from the Gate?                
Would you like a drop off zone outside the back gate?
Do you think it would be healthier for your son to walk all or part of the way to school?

DESCRIPTION OF DAY
The day we picked to have the Car-Free Day and Traffic Survey unfortunately was a bad in terms of the weather, it was lashing rain non-stop! This meant straight away that most people who had planned to use public transport or walk to school, on seeing the rain, hopped in the car. However there were a good few hardy men, and women (teachers obviously) who braved the elements didn’t hop in the car because after all it was Car-Free Day. Despite the whole Green-Schools Committee getting soaked the rain was probably the best weather possible for doing a survey. The reason it was the best weather is because it meant that parents couldn’t give iffy answers saying their son might walk on a wet day etc.

In conducting the survey members of the Green-Schools Committee and Transition Year volunteers stood in the College car park, wearing bright yellow fluorescent vests, and surveyed parents as their son got out of the car and teachers before they got out of the car and sprinted for the school entrance.

There were a few vehicles, mostly SUVs, who accelerated in a wide arc to avoid us when they saw we were stopping every car. Either they were running extremely late and couldn’t stop for 30s to complete a survey or else they had no sons in the school and were afraid of being discovered! We will never know!

SURVEY RESULTS

Click here to view the survey results.

THANKS
The Green-Schools Committee would like to thank the school management for allowing us to hold the Car-Free Day, Brian Mooney, manager of Frascati Shopping Centre for making car parking available to parents free of charge on the day and finally I would like to thank all the volunteers from the Green-Schools Committee and Transition Year who despite the wet weather conducted the survey.

Andrew Patton
Chairman
Blackrock College Green-Schools Committee