The Hertfordshire Schools Journey Planner offers a range of routes either on foot, by bike, by public transport or by car.

It finds the quickest and safest routes to school and helps parents to find alternative ways to get to school other than by car. This in turn should help to ease congestion on our busy roads as well as reduce emissions.

The planner also shows the approximate amount 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. Driving routes are also displayed and parents can see potential alternatives to using the car everyday for the school run.

The system is available on your local county council’s website www.hertsdirect.org/mapit 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.