City and County Lace Up for Walk to School Day

Students in the City of Rockville will celebrate biking and walking to school—and being safe while doing it—as they participate in the .

Four Rockville schools and their PTAs are participating, according to the International Walk to School website. They are:

The celebration is part of the city’s Safe Routes to School initiative and the city's pedestrian safety campaign, known as Smart Steps.

Click here for more on the city’s pedestrian programs.

International Walk to School Day was modeled after a program in the United Kingdom, according to the International Walk to School in the USA website. It started stateside in Chicago in 1997 as a way to bring community leaders and children together to promote walkable communities, safe streets, healthy habits and cleaner air. 

Montgomery County Executive Isiah Leggett (D) and county schools Superintendent Joshua Starr will mark the day at . Students there will start with a group walk and will attend an assembly about how to cross streets safely.

Click here for more on county walk-to-school festivities and the county’s Safe Routes to School program.

The county encourages families who live too far from their school to walk, to instead drive part of the distance, park and then walk the rest of the way. 

Is your school one of the four in the City of Rockville participating in Walk to School Day? Or is every day Walk to School Day in your household? If so, show us how your family participated. Send your photos and thoughts about creating more walking- and biking-friendly communities to sean.sedam@patch.com and we’ll post them on Rockville Patch.