Schoolchildren are more likely to be driven rather than walk or cycle to school, prompting a Sydney council to develop safe routes to encourage parents to let children navigate busy roads.
Overprotective parents, busy roads and heavy school bags have been blamed for the lack of active transport to school, despite the benefits to health and learning.
Bernardo Mason walks with her daughters Pearl, 8, and Ivory, 10, to Galilee Catholic Primary School in Bondi Beach.Credit: Janie Barrett
Waverley Council in Sydney’s eastern suburbs is working with local schools to develop safe routes.
Waverley mayor Paula Masselos said the council would examine the types of signage needed to make walking and cycling safer as well as traffic speeds.
Risk-averse parents stand in the way of many kids walking and riding to school, leading to traffic congestion during school drop-off and pick-up times.
The number of children walking and cycling to school has declined from 75 per cent to 25 per cent over four decades.
Michael Quinn, with dad Kevin trailing behind, runs to Galilee Catholic Primary School in Bondi Beach.Credit: Janie Barrett
Galilee Catholic Primary principal Brian Anderson said the majority of his students walk to the Bondi Beach school.
“However as we are a popular school in the area, families from Rose Bay, Waverley, Woollahra and the city attend our school, so their only option is to get to school via car,” he said.
Walking to school boosts physical health, which Anderson said had a positive impact on the mental health and wellbeing of the children. “It also strengthens community ties as families walk to school together.”
Research shows that children who walk or cycle to school concentrate much better than others during the first few hours of the school day.
A NSW Education Department spokeswoman said walking to school also provided an opportunity for families to teach and practise safe pedestrian behaviour.
Eva Boyd and Madeline Pires, both 6, walk to Galilee Catholic Primary School in Bondi Beach. Credit: Janie Barrett
But the number of children walking and cycling to school has declined from 75 per cent to 25 per cent over the past four decades – despite initiatives such as Walk Safely to School Day.
A 2019 Heart Foundation study found active travel such as walking and cycling is now the least common way for children in Australia to travel to school, with most being driven.
Masselos said many children in Sydney’s eastern suburbs are from small households and do not have an older sibling to accompany them on the walk to school.
Parents with hybrid working arrangements also have time during the week to drive their kids to school, she said. “Most schools don’t provide lockers, so children have to carry a lot of heavy equipment such as laptops, chargers and books.”
Jacqui Pires and six-year-old daughter Madeline walk about 800 metres from their Dover Heights home to the Bondi Beach school at least twice a week.
“I think it’s a nice way to start the day, and it gives me a chance to have a chat with Maddy about what she might be doing at school that day,” she said.
Pires said busy roads were the main obstacle to Madeline walking to school, but she may drop Madeline close by and let her walk part of the way. “I think it does foster a sense of independence.”
Waverley College is also participating in the council’s program by surveying students about how they travel to school and looking at safety and congestion in the area.
Deputy principal Gabrielle Smith said the school encourages those who live locally to walk where possible.
“They can enjoy all the well-known benefits including improved fitness, reduction in obesity, better alertness and mood and increased opportunities for positive social interactions with friends and family”.
More students walking to school will also reduce traffic congestion around the school, she said.
Traffic chaos at school drop-off and pick-up times is a major source of friction between private schools and nearby residents. Police were deployed to monitor parents dropping off and picking up children from SCEGGS Darlinghurst last year after complaints from its inner-city neighbours.
Macquarie University associate professor of health and education Dean Dudley said overprotective parents were reluctant to let kids walk more than about 500 metres to school.
Safety fears about public transport during the pandemic also led more parents to drive kids to and from school.
“The decline in active transport has nothing to do with kids being lazier now than in the past,” he said.
Footpaths too close to a road, especially if there is heavy traffic, also discouraged parents from letting children walk to school, Dudley said. “Urban design is a really important factor to instil confidence in parents to allow active transport.”
Dudley also pointed to initiatives such as the walking bus – where kids walk to school along a set route and are chaperoned by adults.
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