Safety first as Dong Nai debuts model school project

HCM CITY (VNS)— The first Model School Zone project in Viet Nam was launched on Thursday at the Nguyen Thi Minh Khai Primary School in southern Dong Nai Province.

The project seeks to ensure safety for school children, especially in high-risk areas for traffic accident.

It is part of the Walk This Way campaign being carried out by FedEx Express, the world's largest express transportation company and a subsidiary of FedEx Corp, in co-operation with Asia Injury Prevention (AIP) Foundation/Safe Kids Viet Nam.

In the Model School Zone, a number of infrastructure and signage improvements are carried out at the school. These include rubble strips, a speed limit to slow down passing traffic, a pedestrian crossing with traffic lights that will enable children cross the road safely, a new sidewalk, and covers for a drain near the school gates.

Furthermore, school teachers will be trained in effective teaching of safe pedestrian skills, instructions on traffic safety awareness for the children and other fun activities to reinforce safety messages.

The project also will be carried out at other schools in the zone and other provinces where pedestrian safety is an issue.

The Walk This Way Campaign has been implemented since December 2009 with the purpose of improving road safety for children and reduce accidents. — VNS