How a bus stop becomes a lesson in persistence and social engagement
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Contacting the local government office, keeping track of building material prices, studying the conditions required for an urban intervention and many other responsibilities that go beyond the already demanding routine of Secondary school - this is the day-to-day life of the student volunteers of the Bus Stop Project, known in Portuguese as Parada Panorama.
In 2018, the project was conceived with the specific aim of benefiting the schoolchildren of Jardim Panorama. It originated from a design challenge organized by the Avenues São Paulo's community engagement area, with the goal of enhancing the school's surroundings. The challenge identified a critical issue: the absence of a safe area for students to wait for the municipal school bus during their daily comings and goings.
"As soon as we opened Avenues, everyone noticed that the children of Panorama were waiting for their vans on the sidewalk, close to the Marginal expressway, without any kind of protection and exposed to accidents," said Carla Gomes, Avenues teacher. "Because of this vulnerable situation, many of them don’t go to school on rainy or cold days and are exposed to various other safety risks," she added.
Between April and November 2020, a group of students involved in the Green Area (Pracinha) Initiative took charge of the School Bus Stop project.
An event was held with children from the community to understand their needs and their dreams for the School Bus Stop and this led to the first version
of the Executive Project created by the students involved.
Following an online meeting with residents of the neighborhood (condominiums in Panorama), the students received feedback on the first version and were able to fine-tune the project until the end of the year.
Physics, geography, citizenship and persistence in a single project
"When you're 15 or 16, three years is a long time. It's like taking that long to solve a math exercise. They could give up, but they stay focused on their goal. We even have former students who are already at university and are still following Bus Stop"
Carla Gomes
Project leader
When the notion to create the school bus stop arose, the Avenues students had no idea of the learning curve ahead of them - researching the rules, reaching out to the relevant public authorities, and engaging with urban architecture firms. The project proved to be an experience in resilience and exposure to complex issues.
While debating about how this urban intervention would pan out, the team learned about types of terrain, material resistance, thermal aspects, accessibility, among many other variables. An important aspect was also the focus on the target audience of the intervention - the schoolchildren. The Avenues students were concerned with finding out what would be important from the point of view of those who would use the space, a real experience of what is now called customer-centricity. From this perspective, creative and playful ideas were born, such as the installation of an interactive board with educational content and a small library so users could read books while waiting for the bus.
Contact with public authorities to gain approval for the installation of the bus stop began in 2021. Several visits and contact attempts were made - without success.
The approval process got underway after the group met with the São Paulo city government secretary.
After meetings with lawyers, suppliers and Avenues leaders to align responsibilities and technical details of the project, work was carried out with the procurement area to define budgets. With the approval of the Avenues matrix, the term of responsibility was signed with the city government in July 2023. And the work continues.
In addition to the benefits of developing a social engagement and citizenship initiative in the face of a concrete problem, the Avenues students have added a lesson in persistence to their curriculum.
"When you're 15 or 16, three years is a long time. It's like taking that long to solve a math exercise. They could have given up but they kept their eye on the ball. We even have former students, already at university, who continue to keep track of the bus stop initiative," said Carla.
Parada Panorama
Parada Panorama
After noticing the lack of safety for children waiting for public transport on the side of the road, the students came up with a way to create a safe school bus stop. The initiative involved research, contacting authorities and architects, and developing a sustainable technical design. The students also focused on understanding the needs of children, adding educational elements and a small library to the stop. The journey required persistence, with several stages of contact with the city government and other interested parties.
Timeline Parada Panorama
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