Pupils switch on to social to ask you to switch off your engine

Published: Monday 14 March 2022

pupils in the Kirklandpark Primary School Eco Committee stand behind a poster that reads 30 reasons to switch off your engine, and has a graphic of a class of school pupils.

Eco-minded school pupils created a viral video to remind drivers that idling engines waste fuel, cost money and cause pollution.

The children from Kirklandpark Primary School’s Eco Committee are hoping their message will become an online hit and encourage drivers to switch off their engines when they aren’t going anywhere.

The Strathaven school is among those included as South Lanarkshire Council’s Fleet and Environmental Services team launch their latest campaign to highlight the cost and pollution that an idling engine produces.

They are focusing on schools in East Kilbride, and some in surrounding areas, where problems with parking and engine idling have been identified. Banners and signs will be going up to help drive the message home.

Executive Director of Community and Enterprise Resources David Booth said: “The fumes and pollution from idling engines are particularly harmful for young people. The Eco Committee at Kirklandpark and their peers at schools throughout South Lanarkshire recognise and understand that message and hope they can help tell drivers to switch off their engines and not let them idle.

“Idling is not just polluting it also wastes money, and with fuel prices soaring this simple message makes more sense now than ever.”

The Kirklandpark Primary video features one clever pupil pointing out that her classmates won’t get anywhere on their school trip and are just wasting energy if they just keep running on the spot.

In addition to being wasteful and polluting unnecessary engine idling can result in a fixed penalty fine, so remember to switch off your engine.

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