Last week, Mountain Scene reported an Arrowtown teen was left stranded in Queenstown this month after the driver of the last bus service refused to take her because she didn’t have her Bee card, or any cash.
Lightfoot co-founder Amanda Robinson says it’s a familiar story.
"We have an ongoing stream of complaints such as that coming to Lightfoot, too, and so we’d like to do something positive about it."
The hands-on workshops, aimed at 12- to 18-year-olds, are dubbed ‘Street Smarts’ and ‘Urban Survival’, depending on the age group. They’ll be held in October, and cover topics such as walking or busing alone, decision-making under pressure, and effective communication with bus drivers and passenger.
Sensei Pat Quaid, of Samurai Karate, will also be providing self-defence with participants, and they’ll learn how to seek help if they feel stranded or stuck.
"The goal is to ensure every young person feels safe, confident and prepared to navigate the world independently using active travel modes," Robinson says.
"I think it’s presumed that young people just understand how to manage issues when things go wrong, and we’re trying to provide a framework to support them to feel confident about travelling independently, using active modes."
Robinson notes the courses will be available to boys, or those identifying as boys, and girls, or those identifying as girls, separately, initially.
The free courses, run over two weeks, with different time options available, are bookable via the OneBike website from today.
