An online school journey planner has been launched by Hertfordshire County Council to help parents and pupils find the best way to get to school, which should help to reduce congestion.

The Hertfordshire School Journey Planner will be a tool for parents of children starting school for the first time and for older pupils planning their journeys to new secondary schools.

By entering the home postcode and a child’s school into the journey planner, users will be able to compare a range of travel options so journeys can be planned.

The journey planner offers a range of routes either on foot, by bike, by public transport or by car. The planner also shows the approximate number of calories burned on each route and the amount of carbon emissions produced to help families to pick the best way to get to school.

Walking routes take into account unsafe sections of a journey and if possible these will be avoided. For cyclists there are three options to suit the levels of experience and confidence – fastest / quietest / balanced. Public transport options use the up-to-date information from the Traveline web services

The system is available at www.hertsdirect.org/mapit and there are also other useful online services such as the school locator to find the nearest schools to where you live by entering your postcode and the type of school you want to find.