Richie Porte throws support behind Walk Safely to School Day

The Olympian will trade wheels for shoes this Friday to take part in Walk Safely to School Day (WSTSD) with his son Luca.

Now in its 25^th year, the initiative aims to raise awareness of the health, transport and environmental benefits that regular walking can provide for the long-term wellbeing of children.

Mr Porte said he was attracted to WSTSD now that his eldest child was attending Punchbowl Primary School.

"Full discretion, I'm probably like most parents where I have to drive the bulk of the journey to drop my son at school," he said.

"Come Friday, we'll park a bit further away and walk in."

While 'walk' may be in the event's name, other forms of active transport (such as cycling) are also being promoted.

"Luca's starting to ride a little bit now and it's a fantastic thing to be able to do with my son," Mr Porte said.

"Riding a bike has brought me so many things in my life and to be able to share that with my young children, it's a fantastic hobby."

The region is well-suited to walking, with many students and parents using established trails to walk to Punchbowl Primary throughout the year.

Health and physical education teacher Louise Padgett said with so many easy access paths found in Launceston's outer suburbs, promoting the May 10 event wasn't about reinventing the wheel.

"It's just an opportunity to gain extra exposure and encourage more families to join in that routine," she said.

"It's a really easy way for children to get some of their recommended hour of daily exercise, morning and after school."

When it comes to advocating for road safety, educators have adopted a 'walking bus' approach. The strategy emphasises teaching safe practices while on the street.

"Those children and parents that are at the front, they're the drivers of the bus," Ms Padgett said.

"So they learn that they're in charge of checking the driveways and stopping to wait at each crossing so that everybody can cross together and safely."

School principal Jane King said having more students on foot would help the school rush by reducing the number of cars on the road.

"It's definetely one of our goals. This is about the environment as well as fitness, so I'm sure that an improvement in that space would make it much safer and easier for everybody," she said.

While Ms King said it was ideal if parents and children walked together, the principal also wanted students of varying ages to mix together.

"With a school our size, it's really important that we have a strong sense of community," she said.

"So we'll keep promoting that, it'll be an ongoing conversation."

Both Ms King and Ms Padgett hoped for good weather this Friday to ensure a solid turnout of students.

"We're really quite excited, there's a lovely buzz in our school about it being a special day for all of us," Ms King said.