A traffic park or children's traffic park is a park in which children can learn the rules of the road. A traffic park may also be called a traffic garden, transportation park, safety village, learn-to-ride area or Safety Town depending on locale.
Traffic parks are frequently created as an attraction within a larger park. In other cases, they are single-use parks and often small in scale. They can be found in urban areas as well as rural areas.
Children are allowed to use bicycles or pedal-powered cars to navigate the streets and operate according to traffic laws. Sometimes they share a buggy with their parent, who can provide guidance as they circle the park. Typically, traffic parks are scaled-down versions of real street networks, with the lane and street-width proportional to the smaller vehicles. Often they include operating traffic signals and during busy times are even staffed with traffic police.
One of the intentions of the traffic park is to improve awareness of traffic safety among school-aged children. Many traffic parks enable children to gain hands-on experience crossing streets and with bicycle or other pedestrian safety challenges in a highly controlled environment devoid of actual motor vehicles.
Traffic parks exist throughout Asia, Europe, and North America. Traffic parks in Asia and Europe are focused on traffic safety through pedal-powered vehicles. In the United States and Canada they use bicycles as well as electric, motorized vehicles. These North American parks are called safety villages, because of broader emphasis on safety for fire, electrical, food and other educational purposes.
As well as traffic parks, the United Kingdom also has permanent road safety facilities often known as lifeskills centres or safety centres. These differ from traffic parks in that they are typically fully indoors, not open to the public, and feature several separate life-sized sets.
Parks
Australia Apex Merriwa Traffic School, Wangaratta, Victoria.Schools | Children (OnlyMelbourne) Buzy Kidz Traffic School, Mill Park, Victoria. Camelot Traffic School, Moorabbin, Victoria. Casey Safety Village, Cranbourne, Victoria. Constable Care Safety School, Maylands, Western Australia.School (Constable Care Safety School) Essendon Traffic School, Essendon, Victoria. GDF Suez Traffic School, Morwell, Victoria. Kew Traffic School, Kew, Victoria.Kew Traffic School, "City of Boroondara", Accessed online 28 August 2010. SAPOL Road Safety Centre, Thebarton Police Barracks, Adelaide, South Australia. Prior to this, it was located down the road, but was closed to make way for the new Royal Adelaide Hospital
Belgium Mechelen
Canada Chilliwack, British Columbia. Victoria, British Columbia. Vancouver Island Tom Thumb mobile safety village.VISC Tom Thumb Mobile Safety Village , Vancouver Island Safety Council, Accessed 28 August 2010. Belleville, Ontario Chatham, Ontario Durham, OntarioKids Safety Village, Durham Regional Police, Accessed online 28 August 2010. Lambton, Ontario London, Ontario Niagara, Ontario Ottawa, Ontario (Opened in 1972, flooded in 2006, closed in 2007 and demolished in 2010. Rebuilding efforts are currently underway)Ottawa Safety Council, Accessed online 12 December 2014. Peel, Ontario Waterloo, Ontario Windsor, Ontario York, Ontario
Czech Republic In the Czech Republic, there is over 150 traffic parks,List of Traffic Parks in the Czech Republic, 2016 Dětská dopravní hřiště, BESIP, Accessed online 10 June 2016 that are permanently situated in nearly every town or city of population over 20 000. There is also the concept of "moving" parks that are transported from place to place. Prosek, Prague Traffic Park ProsekDopravní hřiště Prosek, Accessed online 10 June 2016 Olomouc Traffic Park of the Semafor centreCentrum Semafor, Accessed online 10 June 2016 Velké Meziříčí Traffic Park Velké MeziříčíDětské dopravní hřiště, Accessed online 10 June 2016
Finland Lasten liikennekaupunki in Helsinki, Finland. It opened on 20 May 1958, near the Olympic Stadium. It received an upgrade in the 1960s, adding small traffic lights. Kupittaanpuisto park in Turku, Finland.Traffic Park, Kupittaanpuisto, Accessed online 28 August 2010 Rahtarit-liikennepuisto in Kangasala, Finland.Rahtarit-liikennepuisto, Rahtarit-liikennepuisto, Accessed online 23 July 2011 Hollihaan liikennepuisto in Oulu, Finland. Lasten liikennekaupunki in Lappeenranta, Finland.
France Marseille
Germany
In Germany traffic parks for bicycles are widespread and a part of school education. The road maps are often found painted on the ground of schoolyards of primary schools and equipped with temporary traffic signs during lessons. In cities, there are often dedicated traffic parks with permanent signs and small traffic lights.
Hong Kong Hong Kong Road Safety Town, Sau Mau Ping, Kowloon Sha Tin, New Territories North Point, Hong Kong Island
Indonesia Bandung
Japan Fuchu, Tokyo Koganei, Tokyo Mitaka, Tokyo Suginami, Tokyo Tama, Tokyo
Russia Автоград, St. Petersburg
Netherlands Utrecht
North Korea Pyongyang, the largest children's traffic park in the country. Kanggye Tanchon Nampo
Turkey Serdivan Belediyesi Trafik Park.http://www.serdivantrafikpark.com , Biggest children traffic park in Asia.http://www.trafikhaber.com/egitim/ortadogunun-en-buyuk-trafik-parki-serdivanda.htm , Built by Serdivan:tr:Serdivan, Sakarya Municipality. This traffic park is a non-profit organization. There are 20 electric cars, 30 bicycle helmets, 10 bicycles, a classroom for theorical traffic education, a mini-hospital for first-aid education in the park.
United Kingdom
Safety Centres Hazard Alley Safety Centre, Milton Keynes Safety Central, Lymm Warning Zone, Leicester DangerPoint, Talacre Lifeskills, Bristol SkillZONE, Gloucester Bury Safety Centre, Greater Manchester SafetyWorks, Newcastle SafeSide Centre, Birmingham
Traffic Parks Coney Hall Recreation Ground, Bromley Cyclopark, Gravesend Watford Cycle Hub, Watford Hillsborough Park, Sheffield Lordship Recreation Ground, Tottenham Wythenshawe Park, Manchester Seashell Trust Campus, Stockport Witton Country Park, Blackburn Everton Park Mini Roads, Liverpool Bellamy Road estate, Mansfield Rectory Park, Sunderland Temple Newsam, Leeds Recreation Ground, Stratford-upon-Avon Tower Gardens, Chelmsford Alice Park, Bath, Somerset
United States Ashville, Chautauqua County, New York, funded by corporate advertising on vehicles, helmets, and buildings,Tim Hortons, E.E. Austin & Son Contractors Open At Safety Village, The Post-Journal, Accessed online 28 August 2010.CCSEV News Page , "Chautauqua Children's Safety Education Village", Accessed online 28 August 2010.Health Department, Chautauqua Children’s Safety Education Village announce collaboration, The Observer, Accessed online 28 August 2010.Children’s Safety Village Clarification, The Post-Journal, Accessed online 28 August 2010. Baton Rouge, Louisiana Boston, Massachusetts - Moakley Park, South Boston Cobb County, Georgia Elmhurst, IllinoisWelcome to Safety Town, "City of Elmhurst, Illinois", Accessed 27 September 2018 Elyria, Ohio Escondido, California Frisco, TexasWelcome to Friso Fire Safety Town , City of Frisco, Texas, Accessed 28 August 2010. Huntington, West Virginia Mansfield, Ohio Mansfield is the location of the first Safety Town. Pasco County, Florida Portsmouth, Virginia Newport, Rhode Island Strongsville, Ohio Temecula, California Washington County, Maryland
References
External links
Discover Traffic Gardens "A History (and a Future) of the Wonderful Worlds of Traffic Gardens", Ian McMurray, Kittleson & Associates, Inc., 16 May 2023 "Safety Town", Ilana Bean, in Guernica, 20 June 2022