Children from a Co Meath national school yesterday launched the county's first "walking bus".
The pupils from Scoil an Spioraid Naoimh in Laytown, with their parents acting as "driver" and "conductor", walked the 1 km along "bus stops" to the school and back.
Laytown is one of the fastest developing parts of the country due to its proximity to Dublin, the M1 motorway and a mainline rail service.
It was decided to introduce the "walking bus" scheme as a safety measure as many cars ferry children to and from school each day.
"We have no traffic warden, no traffic-calming measures and no proper footpaths, and realised we had to help ourselves to try to ease the traffic congestion."
Ms Marion Allen is on the road-safety team set up by the parents of the 450 children attending the school. The school is on the coastal road linking the villages of Laytown and Bettystown, and is under huge pressure from the growing number of families moving into the area.
All the passengers on the bus, aged from five to 12 years, and the adults accompanying them wear fluorescent jackets.
The children are supervised until they reach the school, their home or are met by a parent or guardian. The bus travels along a pre-arranged route, collecting or dropping off children at stops along the way.