School of Environmental Sciences, University of East Anglia, Norwich, United Kingdom.
Am J Prev Med. 2010 Mar;38(3):268-78. doi: 10.1016/j.amepre.2009.10.040.
Walking and cycling to school represent an opportunity for children to achieve regular physical activity. These behaviors may be influenced by characteristics of the environment around homes and schools, yet few studies have quantified the potential associations between these two sets of factors.
This study aims to assess whether objectively measured characteristics of the neighborhood, route, and school environments are associated with active commuting to school among children, and it explores whether distance acts as a moderator in this association.
A cross-sectional study was conducted of 2012 children (899 boys and 1113 girls) aged 9-10 years attending 92 schools in the county of Norfolk, United Kingdom. Questionnaires were completed by children and parents during Summer 2007. Attributes around the home and children's route to school were assessed using a GIS. School environments were assessed using a newly developed school audit and via questionnaires completed by head teachers. Data were analyzed in 2008.
Almost half of the children usually walked or cycled to school. Children who lived in a more deprived area and whose route to school was direct were less likely to walk or cycle to school, whereas those who had a higher density of roads in their neighborhood were more likely to walk. Further, children whose routes had a high density of streetlights were less likely to cycle to school. Distance did not moderate the observed associations.
Objectively measured neighborhood and route factors are associated with walking and cycling to school. However, distance did not moderate the associations found here. Creating safe environments by improving urban design may influence children's commuting behavior. Intervention studies are needed to confirm the findings from this observational cross-sectional study.
步行和骑车上学为孩子们提供了进行规律身体活动的机会。这些行为可能受到家庭和学校周边环境特征的影响，但很少有研究量化这两组因素之间的潜在关联。
本研究旨在评估邻里环境、路线和学校环境的客观测量特征是否与儿童的积极上学交通方式有关，并探讨距离在这种关联中是否起调节作用。
在英国诺福克郡的 92 所学校中，对 2012 名 9-10 岁的儿童（899 名男孩和 1113 名女孩）进行了一项横断面研究。2007 年夏季，儿童和家长完成了问卷调查。使用 GIS 评估家庭周边和儿童上学路线的属性。使用新开发的学校审计和校长完成的问卷评估学校环境。数据于 2008 年进行分析。
近一半的儿童通常步行或骑车上学。居住在较贫困地区且上学路线直接的儿童不太可能步行或骑车上学，而居住在邻里道路密度较高的儿童更有可能步行。此外，上学路线路灯密度较高的儿童不太可能骑车上学。距离并没有调节观察到的关联。
客观测量的邻里和路线因素与步行和骑车上学有关。然而，距离并没有调节这里发现的关联。通过改善城市设计来创造安全的环境可能会影响儿童的通勤行为。需要干预研究来证实这项观察性横断面研究的结果。
