Encinitas Schools Earn Cash Prizes for Having Most Kids Walk, Bike to School

Kids at Flora Vista and Ocean Knoll elementary schools know it pays off to use alternative transportation instead of cars. The San Diego Association of Governments (SANDAG) challenged kids across the county to walk and bike to school for one week, and both schools had such high participation levels that they’ll soon getting cash prizes.

Flora Vista won the grand prize of $1,000—and Ocean Knoll was runner-up, earning a $750 cash prize. Both schools will use the money to buy supplies, according to a SANDAG news release.

Across the region, 29 schools representing 19,260 students participated in the week-long Walk, Ride, and Roll to School Challenge from Oct. 1-5. The purpose of the event was to raise awareness of the health and environmental benefits of walking and biking to school, while also highlighting the importance of pedestrian and bicycle safety.

To keep tabs on student activity, parents logged their children’s commute trips in TripTracker on the SANDAG iCommute website. During the weeklong challenge, a total of 7,356 miles were recorded—and if that rate were maintained all school year, it’d be the equivalent of traveling almost 11 times around the world. It would also save 11,795 gallons of fuel and cut carbon emissions by 237,797 pounds, which the amount offset in a year by 23 acres of pine forests.

The SANDAG iCommute program sponsors the Walk, Ride, and Roll to school Challenge each year. iCommute administers SchoolPool, which helps parents connect with each other to organize carpools, as well as groups for walking and biking to school. For a list of schools enrolled in SchoolPool, click here.

Key partners for this annual iCommute campaign included the San Diego County Bicycle Coalition, San Diego Zoo, Suki Day Spa, and SuperShuttle.