The new document from Hertfordshire County Council aimed at reducing traffic congestion outside primary schools is a breath of fresh air.

The hazards caused by parents dropping off their children right outside school gates have grown so much in the last few years that the situation is now at crisis point. And unless parents realise it is up to them to make the effort to change this routine of a lifetime, the document will be a useless piece of paper.

Of course, not all children live within walking distance from their school. But according to research carried out by the county council, many do -- and they are still driven to and from school. These are the people schools need to target to play their part in reducing congestion. And together with the parents who have the sense to park a few hundred yards from their child's school and walk the rest, the problem could be improved dramatically.

The people who worry about the safety of children on the roads are the very people who are inadvertently creating the danger by parking so close to school gates to try and save just a few minutes each day.

It is up to them to do something. And who knows, it may even help the children of the 90s realise they do in fact have legs after all.

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