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Description:
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Walking can be a safe , healthy , and affordable mode of school transportation .
However , most students today do not use walking for their school travel . More research
is needed to understand the correlates of walking to or from school and to identify
effective interventions .
This is a cross -sectional study of 73 public elementary schools in the Austin
Independent School District of Texas . The first phase used geographic information
systems and field audits to examine school -level disparities in the environmental support
for walking in schools’ attendance areas . The second phase involved surveys of students’
parents or guardians to identify the multi -level correlates of using walking as their
children’s typical school travel mode .
In the first phase , results from analyses of variance and linear regressions
indicated the existence of disparities . Lower economic status of student population was
associated with poorer street conditions (e .g . , maintenance , visual quality , amenities , and
perceived safety ) , shorter distances to school , and lower traffic volumes . Higher
percentage of Hispanic students within a school was associated with increased danger from traffic and crime and more sidewalks , greater population density , and mixed land
uses .
The second phase used binary logistic regressions to predict walking to or from
school . Among the personal and social factors , parents’ education , car ownership ,
personal barriers , and school bus availability were negative correlates , while parents’
and children’s positive attitude and regular walking habit and supportive peer influences
were positive correlates . Of the physical environmental factors , long distance and safety
concerns were the strongest negative correlates , followed by the presence of highways or
freeways , convenience stores , office buildings , and bus stops en route .
In conclusion , environmental interventions are needed to develop centrallylocated
neighborhood schools , barrier -free attendance areas , and well -maintained
pedestrian infrastructure . Disparities and fine -grained differences are found in the
environmental support for walking . A high priority for low -income , Hispanic children
and interventions tailored for specific contexts and populations appear necessary . Safety
improvement is indispensible in terms of both traffic and crime and should be
supplemented with educational programs that target both parents and children . Finally ,
multi -agency collaborations are needed at the policy level to support and facilitate these
multi -level interventions . |