Biking to School: The Role of Bicycle-Sharing Programs in Adolescents

Learning to Cycle: A Cross-Cultural and Cross-Generational Comparison

Background

Learning to cycle is an important milestone for children, but the popularity of cycling and the environmental factors that promote the development and practice of this foundational movement skill vary among cultures and across time. This present study aimed to investigate if country of residence and the generation in which a person was born influence the age at which people learn to cycle.

Methods

Data were collected through an online survey between November 2019 and December 2020. For this study, a total of 9,589 responses were obtained for adults (self-report) and children (parental report) living in 10 countries (Portugal, Italy, Brazil, Finland, Spain, Belgium, United Kingdom, Mexico, Croatia, and the Netherlands). Participants were grouped according to their year of birth with 20-year periods approximately corresponding to 3 generations: 1960-79 (generation X; n = 2,214); 1980-99 (generation Y; n = 3,994); 2000-2019 (generation Z; n = 3,381).

Results

A two-way ANOVA showed a significant effect of country, F _(9,8628) = 90.17, p < 0.001, η p 2 = 0.086, and generation, F _(2,8628) = 47.21, p < 0.001, η p 2 = 0.122, on the age at which individuals learn to cycle. Countries with the lowest learning age were the Netherlands, Finland and Belgium and countries with the highest learning age were Brazil and Mexico. Furthermore, the age at which one learns to cycle has decreased across generations. There was also a significant country x generation interaction effect on learning age, F _(18,8628) = 2.90, p < 0.001; however, this effect was negligible ( η p 2 = 0.006).

Conclusions

These findings support the socio-ecological perspective that learning to cycle is a process affected by both proximal and distal influences, including individual, environment and time.

Access to bike lanes and childhood obesity: A systematic review and meta-analysis

The lack of bike lane access has been a proven risk factor for childhood obesity due to its role in discouraging healthy lifestyles. However, there has not been a systematic review of this important association in the existing literature. This study aims to fill this gap. A literature search was conducted in the Cochrane Library, PubMed, Embase, and Web of Science for studies published from 1 January 2019 onwards that examined the association between bike lane access and weight-related behaviours and outcomes among children aged <18 years. A total of 21 studies were included in this systematic review. Among them, most of the studies showed that bike lane access was significantly associated with children and adolescents' physical activity (PA), whereas only two studies showed a negative association. Meta-analysis also supported these findings and showed that bike lane access was significantly associated with children and adolescents' PA (odds ratio [OR] = 1.57, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.37-1.81). Additionally, we reviewed how bike lane characteristics and microenvironment variables such as children and adolescents' choice of bicycle travel mode, the degree of separation of cycle path, cycle path unevenness, and street maintenance were associated with adolescents' preferences and intention to cycle. This systematic review and meta-analysis strongly suggests that bike lane access is associated with children and adolescents' PA. Nonetheless, it was difficult to draw a conclusion on the association between bike lane access and weight-related outcomes.

International Physical Activity and Built Environment Study of adolescents: IPEN Adolescent design, protocol and measures

INTRODUCTION

Only international studies can provide the full variability of built environments and accurately estimate effect sizes of relations between contrasting environments and health-related outcomes. The aims of the International Physical Activity and Environment Study of Adolescents (IPEN Adolescent) are to estimate the strength, shape and generalisability of associations of the community environment (geographic information systems (GIS)-based and self-reported) with physical activity and sedentary behaviour (accelerometer-measured and self-reported) and weight status (normal/overweight/obese).

METHODS AND ANALYSIS

The IPEN Adolescent observational, cross-sectional, multicountry study involves recruiting adolescent participants (ages 11-19 years) and one parent/guardian from neighbourhoods selected to ensure wide variations in walkability and socioeconomic status using common protocols and measures. Fifteen geographically, economically and culturally diverse countries, from six continents, participated: Australia, Bangladesh, Belgium, Brazil, Czech Republic, Denmark, Hong Kong SAR, India, Israel, Malaysia, New Zealand, Nigeria, Portugal, Spain and USA. Countries provided survey and accelerometer data (15 countries), GIS data (11), global positioning system data (10), and pedestrian environment audit data (8). A sample of n=6950 (52.6% female; mean age=14.5, SD=1.7) adolescents provided survey data, n=4852 had 4 or more 8+ hours valid days of accelerometer data, and n=5473 had GIS measures. Physical activity and sedentary behaviour were measured by waist-worn ActiGraph accelerometers and self-reports, and body mass index was used to categorise weight status.

ETHICS AND DISSEMINATION

Ethical approval was received from each study site's Institutional Review Board for their in-country studies. Informed assent by adolescents and consent by parents was obtained for all participants. No personally identifiable information was transferred to the IPEN coordinating centre for pooled datasets. Results will be communicated through standard scientific channels and findings used to advance the science of environmental correlates of physical activity, sedentary behaviour and weight status, with the ultimate goal to stimulate and guide actions to create more activity-supportive environments internationally.

A Conceptual Framework for Modelling Safe Walking and Cycling Routes to High Schools

Active transport to or from school presents an opportunity for adolescents to engage in daily physical activity. Multiple factors influence whether adolescents actively travel to/from school. Creating safe walking and cycling routes to school is a promising strategy to increase rates of active transport. This article presents a comprehensive conceptual framework for modelling safe walking and cycling routes to high schools. The framework has been developed based on several existing relevant frameworks including (a) ecological models, (b) the “Five Es” (engineering, education, enforcement, encouragement, and evaluation) framework of transport planning, and (c) a travel mode choice framework for school travel. The framework identifies built environment features (land use mix, pedestrian/cycling infrastructure, neighbourhood aesthetics, and accessibility to local facilities) and traffic safety factors (traffic volume and speed, safe road crossings, and quality of path surface) to be considered when modelling safe walking/cycling routes to high schools. Future research should test this framework using real-world data in different geographical settings and with a combination of tools for the assessment of both macro-scale and micro-scale built environment features. To be effective, the modelling and creation of safe routes to high schools should be complemented by other interventions, including education, enforcement, and encouragement in order to minimise safety concerns and promote active transport.

Built Environment, Psychosocial Factors and Active Commuting to School in Adolescents: Clustering a Self-Organizing Map Analysis

Although the built environment and certain psychosocial factors are related to adolescents' active commuting to and from school (ACS), their interrelationships have not been explored in depth. This study describes these interrelationships and behavioral profiles via a self-organizing map (SOM) analysis. The sample comprised 465 adolescents from the IPEN (International Physical Activity and the Environment Network) Adolescent study in Valencia, Spain. ACS, barriers to ACS, physical self-efficacy, social support and sociodemographics were measured by questionnaire. Street-network distance to school, net residential density and street intersection density were calculated from the Geographic Information System. The clustering of the SOM outcomes resulted in eight areas or clusters. The clusters which correspond to the lowest and highest ACS levels were then explored in depth. The lowest ACS levels presented interactions between the less supportive built environments (i.e., low levels of residential density and street connectivity in the neighborhood and greater distances to school) and unfavorable psychosocial variables (i.e., low values of physical self-efficacy and medium social support for ACS) and good access to private motorized transport at home. The adolescents with the lowest ACS values exhibited high ACS environment/safety and planning/psychosocial barrier values. Future interventions should be designed to encourage ACS and change multiple levels of influence, such as individual, psychosocial and environmental factors.