 to School program on walking and biking: Eugene, Oregon study. Transport Policy 29 (2013) 243–248, 29, 243-248
- Household and parental characteristics and perceptions of walking and the built environment may reduce the propensity of children to use active travel modes (walking and bicycling) for their school trip.
- This paper examines whether there is a relationship between walking or bicycling to school and the walking habits of caregivers or parents.
- A statewide pedestrian survey of New Jersey residents was used to assess the mode taken by children for their school trip (age of respondents (parents) 19–84; n=353). Socio-demographic characteristics, public school density, full and part-time employment status of respondents, self-reported frequency of walking of adult respondents and perceived neighborhood environment characteristics are used as independent variables. Logit models are estimated to test associations between these variables.
- Non-minority ethnic status, women respondent's employment type, higher income, and vehicle ownership are negatively associated with active travel to school, while higher public school density is positively associated with choice of an active travel mode.
- Even in favorable circumstances for active travel to school, the employment circumstances of parents or caregivers may deter children from walking to school.
- When parents are active, their children are also more likely to be active. Poor sidewalk quality also deters parents from letting children use active modes for their school trip.
Hyunsoo Parka, Robert B. Nolanda. (2013). Active school trips: associations with caregiver walking frequency. Transport Policy, 29, 23-38
- Few reports examined long term predictors of children's active commuting to school (walking or cycling to school, ACS).
- To identify predictors of ACS over one school year among a sample of children with relatively high rates of ACS.
- Parents were surveyed in September 2010 (Time 1) and April 2011 (Time 2). The dependent variable was children's commuting mode to school (active versus passive). Independent variables included: 1) parents' outcome expectations (from Social Cognitive Theory: the expected risks/benefits for their child doing ACS), 2) distance to school, 3) participation in an adult-led walk to school group, 4) temperature, and 5) child demographics. Generalized mixed-models estimated odds ratios for ACS (n=369 or 49.7% of Time 1 respondents).
- ACS was associated with the following:
- males (OR=2.59, 95% CI [1.57-4.30])
- adult-led walk to school group participation (OR=1.80, 95% CI [1.14-2.86])
- parents' outcome expectations (OR=1.26, 95% CI [1.14-1.39])
- temperature (OR=1.03, 95% CI [1.01-1.07)
- distance to school (OR=0.23, 95% CI [0.14-0.37])
- Latino ethnicity (OR=0.28, 95% CI [0.12-0.65]).
- CONCLUSIONS: Programs and policies sensitive to parents' concerns, e.g. adult-led walk to school groups, and targeting Latinos and girls appear promising for increasing ACS.
Mendoza JA, Cowan D, Liu Y. (2013). Predictors of Children's Active Commuting to School: An Observational Evaluation in Five US Communities. J Phys Act Health. Epublished.
- We assessed changes in transit-associated walking in the United States from 2001 to 2009 and documented their importance to public health.
- We examined transit walk times using the National Household Travel Survey, a telephone survey administered by the US Department of Transportation to examine travel behavior in the United States.
- People are more likely to transit walk if they are from lower income households, are non-White, and live in large urban areas with access to rail systems. Transit walkers in large urban areas with a rail system were 72% more likely to transit walk 30 minutes or more per day than were those without a rail system. From 2001 to 2009, the estimated number of transit walkers rose from 7.5 million to 9.6 million (a 28% increase); those whose transit-associated walking time was 30 minutes or more increased from approximately 2.6 million to 3.4 million (a 31% increase).
- Transit wal