Evaluations of two ACT bicycle safety education programs for primary school children, Bike Ed and the Traffic Centre Road Safety Package (TCRSP), were undertaken in 2006. A content evaluation was undertaken on the programs using the Austroads Road Safety Education Check List and a Bicycle Program Check List. Observations of the bicycle programs in action in both the classroom and the playground for ACT Bike Ed, or in the case of the TCRSP, at the Belconnen Traffic Centre, were undertaken. A process evaluation which involved face-to-face interviews with teachers, program developers, managers and trainers was also undertaken. The evaluations identified a number of positive and negative aspects of both programs and many recommendations for improvements were provided. The ACT Bike Ed program was found to be a worthwhile program that should continue. It will benefit from a number of improvements, particularly from the provision of on-road practical training. Unfortunately, research shows that traffic centres have little to offer children in the development of bicycle and related road safety skills, and hence it is recommended that the TCRSP be discontinued. However, there may be other reasons to provide the program and if so the suggested improvements to this program should be implemented. (a) For the covering entry of this conference, please see ITRD abstract no. E216178.
Abstract