Local Outcome 4: Traffic-Free Schools have real impact on improving road safety and the surrounding environment

Four East Dunbartonshire schools are now permanently Traffic-Free Schools following the implementation of a successful pilot scheme that aimed to increase child and pedestrian safety.

Councillors agreed to make the Traffic-Free Schools initiative permanent at Clober Primary School in Milngavie, Craighead Primary School in Milton of Campsie and the shared St Matthew’s and Wester Cleddens Primary School campus in Bishopbriggs after hearing about the impact the pilot scheme has had on improving road safety and the surrounding environment outside the schools.

Traffic-Free Schools is an initiative where driving is prohibited on sections of road immediately outside the entrance to schools, for a short period of time at the start and end of the school day.

It aims to help improve safety by reducing the volume of vehicles parked and moving around at the busiest areas for children and adults accessing the school.

The pilot scheme began in November 2023 and prohibited driving at selected roads - adjacent to the schools between 8.30 and 9.15am and 2.30 and 3.15pm on Monday to Friday during term time via an Experimental Traffic Regulation Order (ETRO).

Detailed monitoring was carried out throughout the project through traffic counts, parking surveys and question and answer surveys with parents, carers, school staff and local residents.

And the monitoring revealed that the volume of vehicle traffic significantly reduced at all three locations in the morning and afternoon, with reductions of up to 76% counted at Clober Primary School in the morning.

The number of parents and carers stopping and parking directly outside the school entrances also saw a large decrease, with reductions of up to 78% and 79% recorded in the morning at Craighead Primary School and at the shared restricted zone at St. Matthew’s Primary School and Wester Cleddens Primary School respectively.

“The project has helped make it more attractive for walking, wheeling and cycling thereby encouraging more journeys to be made in this way. 

“As well as creating a calmer environment at the school gate and making roads safer, it has also helped to reduce the pollution that would previously have been breathed in by our young people on the way to school.”

The pilot was well-supported by parents, carers and local residents with three-quarters of those who responded to our survey supporting the pilot restrictions being made permanent.

A fifth of all parents and carers also said they had changed their main mode of travel, with 66% of this group saying they walk more to and from school, with 45% using the car less since the project has been in place, which is very positive news.  

Catriona Marshall, Head Teacher at Clober Primary School, was pleased with the results of the project.

She said, “There are obvious health and mental wellbeing benefits for children who walk, cycle or scoot to school, but the scheme has also created a safer environment for the children around the school as the volume of vehicle traffic has significantly reduced.

“Many parents and pupils have told me how much of a difference the lack of traffic around the school has made. The journey to and from school is now more pleasant for everyone.”

The success of the project saw the Council introduce a second phase at three new schools in August 2025 – Lennoxtown Primary School, Meadowburn Primary School in Bishopbriggs and Thomas Muir Primary School in Bishopbriggs. 

Full details of the initiative – including a list of frequently asked questions – can be found on the Traffic-Free Schools webpage.