RICHARD Lander School is helping to solve the traffic congestion problems on Tresawl's Road in Truro with the help of Cornwall County Council's Travel Awareness Team who have donated them electric bikes.

The school is working very hard to encourage both pupils and staff to travel by non-car modes. Its success is already clear with a recent survey revealing 97% of pupils' travel to school by either walking, cycling, train or bus. This success has been rewarded by the loan of electric bikes from the County Council.

The aim of the bikes is to encourage staff that live too far away to walk but close enough not to really have to use the bus to consider other options. As teaching staff have lots of books and paperwork to carry electric bikes were seen as the ultimate solution.

Phil Gilbert, Assistant Head Teacher , said, "This is fantastic, the school loves having the electric bikes. Staff are using them to travel to and from school and to meetings in Truro. We also hope to allow some students to use them in the New Year."

Pete Keyes, Travel Awareness Team Leader said: "I was delighted to be able to loan the electric bikes to Richard Lander as the school are working very hard to promote non car travel."

The school was recently awarded almost £11,000 by the Government for cycle parking at part of their travel plan work.

Both Richard Lander School and the County Council have pledged that the new school will celebrate the best of sustainable transport in particular quality bus partnerships and state of the art cycle parking.