St Louis Post Dispatch: Getting kids to walk to school

The St Louis Post-Dispatch recently had a great article about encouraging more kids to walk and bicycle to school:

About 13 percent of children 5 to 14 years old usually walk or bike to school, according to data released today by the National Center for Safe Routes to School, a nonprofit group that encourages walking and biking to schools. Parents most commonly cite concerns about the distance to schools, traffic, weather and crime when considering whether their child should walk. 

Heidi Luzynski, of south St. Louis County, has two school-age children who either ride the bus or get dropped off by car.

She never considered letting them walk.

"It’s just not safe," she said. "It’s not that we live in a bad neighborhood, but you just never know." 

The number of walkers and bikers has been fairly stable for the past 15 years but marks a significant decline from 48 percent in 1969, the last time the National Household Travel Survey, funded by Department of Transportation, specifically asked the same question. Amid growing concern about childhood obesity, there is a renewed effort to boost the percentage of walkers and bikers by improving infrastructure and addressing parental concerns.