ISAAC Brock School’s early success with an active transportation pilot project could pave the way for other communities seeking to promote walking, biking and rolling to class in Winnipeg.

On the first day of the new school year, the Green Action Centre, Winnipeg School Division, and City of Winnipeg launched a first-of-its-kind “school street” project in Manitoba, at 1265 Barratt Ave.

In the months since, Barratt Avenue, the street on which the main doors to the K-9 school are located, has been closed off to the public between 8:30 a.m. and 4 p.m. on weekdays, to protect pedestrians, limit idling near the school entrance, and encourage alternatives to car commuting.

The oldest students at Isaac Brock are tasked daily with setting up barricades to block off the stretch during the morning and afternoon rush hours, when pupils are coming and leaving the grounds.

“It’s really opened our eyes to the fact that we do need to encourage students to walk to school more,” said Marla Tran, vice-principal at Isaac Brock.

Tran admits the pilot has made her more conscious of how she commutes. She’s started to walk to and from work whenever she can this year, while the roster of students and staff doing the same has also increased.

Before the COVID-19 pandemic, approximately 52 per cent of the student population walked, rolled or biked to school, per a new report authored by the Green Action Centre. The rest of the families either drove children to school or sent them on a school bus, both with 24 per cent of the total share of commuters.

Mid-pilot this fall, GAC surveyed families to gauge experiences. Of the 71 guardian respondents, 15 per cent indicated a shift in their children’s travel mode to walking, biking or rolling, citing Barratt Avenue being closed.

(Total enrolment is approximately 348, although many families have more than one child at the school.) There have been challenges with congestion on surrounding streets, access for residents who live on Barratt Avenue, and accommodations for students with mobility needs, but Denae Penner, GAC lead on the project, said changes will be made in the coming months to improve the pilot for all community members.

Overall, focus groups and surveys yielded positive results about security, with the majority of students and area residents saying the pilot makes them feel safer, she said.

“It can be difficult to move away from using your car every day, so we’re hoping we can do things like this that create a safe opportunity to start in a small way, incorporating walking into daily routines,” Penner added.

“By offering one safe block where that can happen, I’m hoping we can help people see the benefits it can have in the long term for their family and their neighbourhood.”

The school street was originally slated to last 60 days. The city extended it into December, and more recently, until the last day of school in June.

Ken Allen, city spokesman, said in a statement Wednesday the public works department will consider whether school streets are feasible elsewhere throughout the rest of the 2020-21 Isaac Brock pilot.

maggie.macintosh@freepress.mb.ca Twitter: @macintoshmaggie