Because it's so much more than a bike ride!
A bike bus is a feel-good way to start the school day, but even in our region bike buses are doing so much more: they increase road safety, support community, and help kids’ health and education. It’s benefits, all the way down!
Riding together strengthens community connections
Proximity is an unsung, important variable in building relationships because, frankly, it’s easier to hang out with people who are nearby. Your kid’s school provides a group of people and a bike bus provides an opportunity to regularly meetup. With some time, your bike bus buddies might become your BB4Ls. (Bike Buddies for LIFE!)
Traffic gets a bit safer
Riding in a group encourages traffic to slow down, and bike buses remove cars from the road (especially during drop-off and pick-up). These things combined make it easier for all road users to get around safely—even cars!
Positive education outcomes get a bump, too
Any active commute better prepares children to be engaged at school and for their brains to take in and learn information. But you don’t have to take our word for it. It’s science!
Are you convinced yet? Read all about the KC metro's FIRST bike bus, launched just last fall by families at Hale Cook Elementary in Waldo KCMO. Since then, Border Star Montessori and Foreign Language Academy (also KCMO), Rushton Elementary (Shawnee Mission School District), and TA Edison Elementary (KCK) have all started their own bike buses!
**Join us for a Bike Bus Info Night + Paint Party on August 23, 2026 to ask questions, meet other families interested in bike buses, and paint your own BIKE BUS t-shirts!
Ellen (aka the Bike Bus Fairy) is an enthusiastic cyclist with a terrible sense of direction. She leads KC Family Bike Ride (in a straight line) and the Border Star Montessori bike bus. She works with BikeWalkKC to encourage and enable families across the metro to ride for fun and function.
Get in touch: ellen.schwartze@bikewalkkc.org