Thread by @MitchellReardon

After decades of messaging like this, is it any surprise that many parents are scared to let their kids walk or bike to school (or be judged for doing so)? A thread... #BackToSchool #FreeRangeKids

The reduction in walking & biking among kids has been one of the most effective social engineering initiatives of the past 50 years. Look at that behaviour change!

Powerful messaging combined with car-centric development have radically shifted how children move.

The results have...not been good. Adolescent obesity rates have doubled, tripled, quadrupled and more since the 1970s. Many western countries have seen greatest rise, but as car ownership spreads, so to does obesity among young people.

As this public health crisis spreads, children's knowledge of their neighbourhoods shrink. citylab.com/transportation…

This is problematic for human happiness. Kids are fantastic social lubricators, connecting parents with each other, strangers and, of course, dog-walkers. As @thehappycity, among others, has found, social interaction is a cornerstone of human happiness.

As with nearly every other mobility pattern in cities, people on the lower end of the SES, often people of colour, are disproportionately negatively affected. They walk & bike most, but haven't reaped the benefits of recent improvements to walk/bike infra.
usa.streetsblog.org/2014/05/08/low…

And are kids happier now that they get chauffeured everywhere? Not according to global studies that have consistently found Dutch children to be the happiest in the world.

The avg Dutch teen bikes 2000km a year (thanks for the useful fact, @modacitylife)
theguardian.com/world/2018/jun…

Then there's that pesky #climateemergency... Data's scarce, but a Safe Routes to School initiative in Columbia, Mo found that getting 280 kids who lived within a mile of school to walk instead of drive saved 40,000 miles driven & 19 tons of Co2 a year! saferoutespartnership.org/sites/default/…

There are many, many benefits to walking & biking to school, but how to support it?

Better active transportation infra is fundamental. But even when demand is shown, and even when it involves children's safety, decision-maker interest can be s/low.

Programs like Safe Routes to School, walking school buses & bike to school week to shift behaviour within 15 minutes walking or biking ride can be a powerful starting point. Frame it as a test. Schools love tests!

If such an initiative succeeds in the short-term, can it be scaled up?

Why not bike to school year? Why not replace kids pick up & drop off with "park & stride programs", like many UK schools?
theguardian.com/environment/20…

As these programs succeed, its back to the fundamental goal of making walking & cycling routes to school safe, comfortable & interesting.

Easier said than done, but it worked for the Dutch (and was especially powerful when kids led the protests). bicycledutch.wordpress.com/2013/12/12/ams…

Decades of car-centric development & fear mongering can't be undone overnight, but for every action, there's an equal & opposite reaction. Why not flip the script on kids walking & biking? Why not start with #BackToSchool?

And by reducing the number of vehicles congesting school zones at peak hours, people with mobility barriers who require direct access to school entrances by vehicle gain safer, faster and more convenient access.

Sustainable, equitable, social, healthy & much more. Time to get kids walking and cycling to school wherever proximity and (a certain degree of) safety allow.

The reduction in walking & biking among kids has been one of the most effective social engineering initiatives of the past 50 years. Look at that behaviour change!