Third Hands Up cycle survey gets underway

The third annual school travel survey – Hands Up Scotland – got underway this week.

Seeking to reveal how children travel to school, the Sustrans-led survey is said to be the largest and most comprehensive of its nature. Last year more than 415,000 children – approximately 59 per cent of all pupils in Scotland – took part.

The second Hands Up survey revealed a slight dip in the number of children cycling to school, prompting Sustrans to admit there’s much to be done to get kids on bikes.

The survey is a partnership project funded by the Scottish Government and delivered by Sustrans and School Travel Coordinators across all Scotland’s Local Authorities.

John Lauder, national director of Sustrans Scotland, said: "The information that we gain from the survey is invaluable in ensuring that both Sustrans and Local Authority School Travel Coordinators can continue to effectively tackle the school run by supporting young people to walk and cycle to school.”

“This year will be our third set of results, and we’re now building a comprehensive dataset of school travel patterns. The information from this year’s Hands Up Scotland Survey will be used to highlight those regions and schools that need more support to give children the opportunity to make greener and healthier school travel choices."