Youngsters have celebrated being able to “breathe in the fresh air” as their school became the first in Newcastle to ban cars outside its gates.
Hotspur Primary School, in Heaton, is the site of the city’s long-awaited first School Streets scheme, set up in a bid to slash harmful emissions and make what was a congested road safer for children. The project, which began on Monday and will run for an initial 18 months, sees roads and back lanes around the school closed to traffic from 8am to 9.30am and between 2.30pm and 4pm, in a bid to get more parents to leave their car at home for the school run.
As the school marked Clean Air Day on Thursday, campaigning ‘eco warrior’ pupils said the area was previously filled with “lots of pollution” and urged families to “do the right thing” by walking, cycling, or scooting.
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11-year-old Aida Jabero told ChronicleLive that it was “just nice to breathe in the fresh air” on her way to school, while 10-year-old Martha Oswald added: “It is definitely safer and I feel more comfortable around school, not having to worry about the cars and everything. I used to get a bit overwhelmed by it.”
Many parents have been clamouring for action to cut down on traffic around Mowbray Street, with complaints that there was often a “crush of cars” outside the school gates. The School Streets project had been slated to start in summer 2021 and Newcastle City Council originally announced that 11 schools would be taking part, but it has taken more than a year to get the first scheme off the ground.
Headteacher Kevin McVittie said he was certain more Newcastle schools would take part and was aware of others which are “really, really keen” to join the trial.
Parent Ruby Goldman said the changes this week had made the school run “a lot less panicky”. The mum-of-two added: “You don’t have to worry about your child running across the road to get to the park or get to your car, the street is cleaner and quieter now.
“I think a lot of people had it in their head that you need to get a parking space closest to the school, almost like a competition. Hopefully this encourages more people to get a bike or to walk instead.”
Other parents said that Mowbray Street was "certainly safer" now and had been "really bad" for congestion and parking trouble in the past. Local councillor Gareth Kane, who has donned a high-vis jacket this week to marshal traffic away from the school, said the restrictions had made a “palpable” difference.
The Liberal Democrat added: “Motorists have been largely compliant and are getting used to it, most of those who have driven through are very apologetic for having made a mistake. I think almost every school should have this and I know there are many in Newcastle where parents are begging for such a thing.”
Residents and some other drivers, including blue badge holders, do still have access to the street during the closure times, but all other traffic must find an alternate route. Ali Stansfield, who has worked in the school for charity Sustrans to promote the scheme, said that the “vast majority” of children were in support of it.
She added: “It is not about banning cars, it is about making it safer for the children and we do have exemptions in place to make the disruption for local people as little as possible. It is just three hours a day where we are asking people to think about children’s safety.”
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