Post-Covid kids aren't walking to school like they used to

Embargoed until: Publicly released: 2024-04-12 09:14

New Zealand

Jorge Royan via Wikimedia Commons

The Covid lockdown period has disrupted Kiwi kids who walk to school, with students 42% less likely to return to their usual walking commute, new research finds. It's potentially accelerated an existing trend, with the study authors saying that between the 90s and 2014, the number of students being driven to school increased from 21% to 32%. The authors say that restoring the walking habit would reduce our reliance on private vehicles and encourage the physical and social benefits of active transport.

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Journal/
conference: Journal of Transport & Health

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Organisation/s: University of Otago, AGILE Research Ltd., Auckland University of Technology,

Funder: The BEATS Natural Experiment was supported by the Health Research Council of New Zealand Project Grant (19/173). The BEATS Study was supported by the Health Research Council of New Zealand Emerging Researcher First Grant (14/565), National Heart Foundation of New Zealand (1602 and 1615), Lottery Health Research Grant (Applic 341129), University of Otago Research Grant (UORG 2014), Dunedin City Council and the University of Otago internal grants.

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