Report aims to help make walking to school easier, safer in Metro Vancouver

The most walkable school neighbourhoods in Metro Vancouver tend to be concentrated in densely populated urban centres like downtown Vancouver, North Vancouver and New Westminster, according to a recent report.

It also found that more-sprawling urban centres like Surrey, Coquitlam and Ridge Meadows were less walkable for students.

The report gives communities new insight into neighbourhoods that should be get improvements to make it safer and easier for kids to walk and bike to school.

Victoria Barr, co-owner of LevelUp Planning Collaborative, the consultancy that wrote the report, said she hoped it would help school administrators, communities and students identify issues and develop solutions.

“Children and youth need to be part of the planning,” Barr said. “They need to be actively involved.”