School routes that are used by a large number of pupils are particularly worthy of protection. Here, it should naturally be as safe as possible, for example through appropriate traffic calming measures such as 30 km/h. However, such measures can often only be legally implemented if it can be justified that these are heavily frequented routes to school.
With our solutions such as the Safer Mobility Analytics & Research Tool (SMART) and the digital school route planner, we help local authorities to better identify highly frequented routes to school – in a well-founded, data-based manner and in line with the German Road Traffic Act (StVO).
What are highly frequented routes to school and are they busy?
Following amendments to the German Road Traffic Regulations (StVO)(Section 45 Traffic Signs and Traffic Devices 9) and the General Administrative Regulation on the Road Traffic Regulations (VwV-StVO)(on Section 41 Regulatory Signs, on Sign 274 Maximum Permitted Speed 13a) (StVO amendment 2025), there is a clear definition of what is meant by a “highly frequented route to school”: These are road sections with a bundling effect – i.e. routes that are regularly used by a particularly large number of pupils to get from home to school, on foot, by bicycle or also in conjunction with public transport. Their location must be justified. It can also be derived from school route plans drawn up by the schools concerned and the responsible road traffic authority and, if applicable, the police and road construction authority. A school route is also considered to be highly frequented if it is classified as important in the context of a model consideration.
But how can this bundling be objectively proven? How can a municipality justify which road sections fulfill these criteria?
Our solution: data, maps and digital school route planning
The location of particularly busy school routes is often determined by the school route plans drawn up by the responsible road traffic authority, schools and, where applicable, the police and road construction authorities. This is because routes that are frequently recommended are automatically used more intensively. But how do you find these highly frequented school routes and how can safe school route plans be drawn up?
Our products provide local authorities, schools and all other stakeholders with the necessary basis for this. Our nationwide road safety map provides the ideal basis for classifying every section of road and every route in detail with regard to its hazard potential, based on accident data, speeds traveled and much more. Our resulting applications specifically help to identify particularly heavily used routes to school and to optimize them in terms of road safety, e.g. to set up a 30 km/h speed limit.
SMART provides the responsible authorities with an up-to-date, data-based picture of the road safety situation for a municipality’s entire road network.
With the digital school route planner parents can use the routing application, which takes danger spots into account, to find a safe route to school or nursery. The digital map can be supplemented with further information to create a complete, official school route plan. Ideally, planning is carried out in cooperation with schools, the police and road traffic authorities – just as the administrative regulations of the German Road Traffic Act (StVO) stipulate. Our online solutions create the platform for structured, digital collaboration – always based on up-to-date data.
Clear decision-making basis for a 30 km/h speed limit
The combination of mapped school routes, real usage data and interactive evaluations creates a comprehensible basis for classifying a road section as a “highly frequented school route”.
This provides local authorities with robust arguments for temporary or permanent speed reductions, enabling them to prioritize measures and justify them with legal certainty.
Are you planning to designate highly frequented school routes?
Then get in touch with us! We will show you how you can obtain a data-based decision-making basis in just a few steps – and thus make an important contribution to school route safety.