More than 30,000 people in Northern Ireland have walked, run and cycled more than 60,000 miles – more than 175 times the circumference of Northern Ireland – in just three weeks, as local active travel game Beat the Street reaches the halfway point.
Running until 2 November, Beat the Street is a giant physical activity initiative that aims to get thousands of people in Northern Ireland moving by turning Belfast, Lisburn, Newtownabbey and Holywood into a city-wide game.
Hundreds of beeping and flashing sensors called Beat Boxes have been placed across all four areas. Local residents are able to pick up cards and fobs which they can tap against Beat Boxes to track their journey, receive points and win prizes.
More than 180 teams representing local schools, charities, community groups and businesses are competing against each other to see who can travel the furthest to win prizes of up to £1,000 worth of Decathlon vouchers.
Funded by the National Charity Partnership, a partnership between Diabetes UK, the British Heart Foundation (BHF) and Tesco, Beat the Street aims to help people get active and stay active, to improve their health.
Playing the game means that, in turn, people’s physical activity levels increases and the idea is that beyond the six weeks participants will continue to adopt their new and healthier every day routine.
Jenna Hall, programme director for the National Charity Partnership, said: “We’re working to help millions of people eat better and be more active, to help lower their risk of Type 2 diabetes and heart and circulatory disease. As part of our Let’s Do This initiative, Beat the Street is helping us to get whole communities moving.”
To get involved with Beat the Street – visit beatthestreet.me/ni
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