Mar. 24, 2023 Elijah Hamilton
P.S./I.S. 49 in Middle Village school is encouraging its students to walk to school on April 5 in celebration of National Walking Day.
According to the school’s Parent/Teacher Coordinator Christina Chiaramonte, the initiative started when she learned about National Walking Day from a local parent and thought it would be a fun idea for students. Additionally, she said the effort could potentially help to alleviate vehicular traffic around the perimeter of the school, creating a safer environment for students.
“How fun would it be if we could encourage all the students to walk to school and maybe eliminate some of the traffic, at least for one day,” Chairamonte told QNS.
Chairamonte stated that parents who drop off their kids at the school — located at 63-60 80th St. in Middle Village —often double park in the morning, which can cause traffic issues on the surrounding roadways.
“Like all the other schools in the in the area, there’s a really bad issue with parents driving their kids to school in the morning and double parking,” Chiaramonte said.
Additionally, she told QNS that the walking initiative promotes better health for the school’s student body.
“It’s good idea to get in a little morning exercise before having to go into school and sit for five or six hours during the day,” Chiaramonte said.
National Walking Day, which happens every first Wednesday of April, encourages people of all ages to go outside and walk.
According to the American Heart Association (AHA) , walking is one of the easiest and cheapest things you can do to reduce your risk of heart disease and stroke – the nation’s No. 1 and No. 5 killers.