A CYCLING campaigner has said a scheme to stop cars using roads near schools is a “no brainer” idea the council should introduce in Worcester.

School Streets, which are timed or permanent road closures, aim to make it safer for pupils by school gates, improve air quality, and make space for social distancing.

Councils across the country have been trialling the scheme which has led Danny Brothwell, chairman of Bike Worcester, to question why Worcestershire County Council has yet to try it.

Mr Brothwell said: “It is a no brainer. I think Worcester is a good place for it, in the city there are genuine challenges of the logistics of getting kids to school.

“There isn’t even one School Street in Worcestershire, the county council is silent on the issue. The government’s message is walk, cycle or scoot to school, but the county is not promoting it. School Streets could be one way.What would need to be done is on a school-by-school basis assess whether there is any merit in creating a School Street.

“In some instances it probably wouldn’t be appropriate, particularly when a school is on a main road.”

Mr Brothwell said the scheme would also prevent stationery traffic outside school gates.

“They have their engines on while, for example, toddlers about three feet tall are walking past the exhaust pipes,” he added.

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Under the scheme, emergency vehicles, blue badge holders, and residents are still able to access the roads leading to the school gates at all times, but other motor vehicles, including those driven by parents to drop off or pick-up children at the school gates, have restricted access. All this is managed by appointed marshals at the road block.

In recent years the Worcester News has reported on issues outside schools. In 2016 police spoke to two mums following a dispute about parking outside the gates of Perry Wood Primary and Nursery school.

And in October we reported on the issues outside St George’s Catholic School and Riversides School, both in Thornloe Road, Barbourne, with parents calling for action there.

Councillor Alan Amos, cabinet member with responsibility for highways, said: “The county council aims to provide children with a safe and healthy environment on routes to schools, with school keep clear and parking restrictions where appropriate. We work closely with district council colleagues as our parking enforcement agent to manage inconsiderate and illegal parking. We are currently investigating the opportunities to support parking enforcement through technologies that provide automated enforcement of ‘School Keep Clear’ regulations.”