Factors Associated with Children Being Driven to School: Implications for Walk to School Programs

This article reports on a study of the factors associated with children being driven to school, with an emphasis on supporting walk-to-school programs. The study included 1603 students (aged 9–11 years) and their parents, all from 24 public primary schools in inner western Sydney, Australia. Students recorded their modes of travel to and from school for 5 days in a student survey. Parents recorded their demographic data, their attitudes to travel, and their modes of travel to work, using a self-administered survey. The data analysis found that 41% of students traveled by car to or from school for more than 5 trips per week. Almost a third (32%) of students walked all the way. Only 1% of students rode a bike and 22% used more than one mode of travel. Of those who were driven, 29% lived less than 1 km and an additional 18% lived between 1 and 1.5 km from their school. After adjusting for other potential confounders, factors associated with car travel were mode of parents’ travel to work, parent attitudes, number of cars in the household, and distance from home to school. The authors conclude with a brief discussion of the importance of walk-to-school programs addressing the link between parent journey to work and student journey to school.

• Availability:
  • Find a library where document is available. Order URL: http://worldcat.org/issn/02681153
• Authors:
  • Wen, Li Ming
  • Fry, Denise
  • Rissel, Chris
  • Dirkis, Helen
  • Balafas, Angela
  • Merom, Dafna
• Publication Date: 2007-9

Language

• English

Media Info

• Media Type: Print
• Features: References; Tables;
• Pagination: pp 325-334
• Serial:
  • Health Education Research
  • Volume: 23
  • Issue Number: 2
  • Publisher: Oxford University Press
  • ISSN: 0268-1153
  • Serial URL: http://her.oxfordjournals.org/

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Attitudes; Automobile ownership; Bicycle commuting; Bicycling; Commuting; Demographics; Elementary school students; Parents; Pedestrians; Policy making; School children; School trips; Schools; Trip length; Walking; Work trips
• Uncontrolled Terms: Walk to school
• Geographic Terms: Sydney (Australia)
• Subject Areas: Highways; Safety and Human Factors; Society; I72: Traffic and Transport Planning;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 01121877
• Record Type: Publication
• Files: TRIS
• Created Date: Feb 17 2009 12:31PM