Everybody, including adults but especially children, are in danger on their way home from school. We want to draw attention on this problem by focusing on one of the most dangerous streets in our town.
The ideas
Students at the school were talking about risky places for pedestrians in Smederevo in their civic education class. After an exchange of individual observations, they agreed that there are places that are a big risk as a lot of accidents happen in these places. Students were divided into teams and decided to record video clips about those places in order to share their observations with environment and local government authorities.
They also planned a collaborative operation with traffic police: a series of lectures about risky behaviour in traffic, and the importance of respecting the rules of traffic, as part of a campaign to increase knowledge about the risks. This idea has credibility because young people are not taught knowledge and awareness of safe participation in traffic at school.
In the end, the students agreed that it is a good idea to encourage other participants in school to think about the future of their own city, and that their ideas can help the development of their community.
The initiatives
One group of students made a video clip showing one of the riskiest parts in Smederevo. It is a three-lane transit route traversed by heavy trucks, and at the side of the road there is a railway. There are no traffic lights or pedestrian crossings, no sidewalks or street lights. This is the route that pupils must take in order to go to their nearby elementary school (students from 7‒14 years).
In the videos, students are accompanied on their way from their homes to school and the parents were interviewed. The video features student feedback about the problem.
The video, along with a letter, was sent to the Mayor and Cabinet Directorate of Urban Planning with an initiative to solve the problem of risky places for pedestrians.
