Due to its location, the elementary school south in Puchheim has to struggle particularly with the so-called parent taxis. The traffic situation is more than hot in the morning. Now teachers and parents have developed a special idea: parent stops.
Puchheim - The subject of traffic safety has been a concern of the Grundschule Süd on Distelweg for a long time. There is a lively cooperation between the school management, the parents' council and the city. Rector Christian Römmelt knows the essence of the problem: The school is in a residential area, the access road is very narrow. "The parental taxis block the road, it is very tight." To make matters worse, there is also the treasure island Kindergarten next door, which also ensures heavy traffic.
Simply drop children on the way to work
As Römelt explains, there are two reasons why some children do not walk to school. Some live at the very end of the catchment area, almost in Eichenau. "This is very far away, especially for the first graders." Another reason is that the parents simply take the children with them on the way to work. However, this increases the traffic in front of the school and at the same time reduces security. This, in turn, could cause more parents not to let their children walk. A vicious cycle - which should now be broken.
The school family, with the support of the city, has considered setting up parent stops. If you are heading towards the train station, head for the parking bay on Allinger Straße at the PUC cultural center. Parking spaces are reserved there between 7.15 a.m. and 7.45 a.m. Say: goodbye child, door open and continue. The parking bay on the opposite side is already signposted accordingly: You can park here for half an hour between 7 a.m. and 5 p.m.
Reward cards for walking
The goal is that the children, ideally in groups, walk about ten minutes to school from Allinger Straße. “The children should take responsibility for their way to school,” explains Rector Römmelt. The parent stops are also a good way to gently lead the little ones there. First of all, it's a test. "We are now looking at how it works," says Römmelt. Other measures are also under discussion. There may be a small school bus for the children who live further away.
The parent stops are installed as part of the child-friendly community and the "Walk to School" campaign. In order to take away the worry of parents letting the children go their own way, school route plans were drawn up. The project has been running at the elementary school on Gerner Platz since 2017, according to the city with great success. In a very short time, 96 percent of the little ones were no longer traveling by car, but on foot, by scooter or bike. The children receive a reward card for this. The campaign weeks run from February 14th to 20th and from May 4th to 8th. At the end, a class winner is determined, who receives the challenge cup and the class price. At the primary school on Gerner Platz, they were ice cream vouchers. The elementary school south, which is there for the first time, has offered exercise games for the break.
Mayor inaugurates the parent stops
The parent stops will be inaugurated next Friday by Mayor Norbert Seidl. The meeting point is at 7 a.m. on Allinger Strasse near the Evangelical Church. Afterwards it goes together to school as a "bus with feet".
Another exciting topic in Puchheim: the Munich allowance for educators. In addition, elementary and middle school teachers demand more starting salaries and shorter working hours.