Participation In Active Travel Research Articles

Health enhancement through activity travel participation and physical activity intensity

IntroductionPast studies investigate the impact of health parameters on activity and transport options. However, limited research has been done on how activity-travel participation influences health outcomes. Physical activity has the potential to improve health characteristics; however, its intensity (duration and frequency) and optimal mode are yet to be determined. Therefore, the current study aims to use physical activity intensity (PAI) as an intermediate variable to study the correlation among daily activities, transport mode choice, and health parameters to pursue sustainable transportation and improve health parameters. MethodsIn September 2013, a multidimensional three-week household survey was used to collect the data containing 191 households and 732 individuals representing 0.029% of the total population of Bandung, Indonesia. SPSS was used for the data normalization and descriptive analysis, whereas R was used for the multilevel regression and structural equation modeling (SEM). Four models were developed between endogenous, mediator, and exogenous variables. ResultsA significant correlation was found between daily activities, transport mode choice, and health parameters with exceptionally acceptable R2 and p-values. The appraised results indicate that strenuous PAI is 2.1% and 0.3% positively correlates with physical health (PH) and social health (SH), showing that it mediates the correlation among transport-related daily activities and health parameters. High-income households are dependent on motorized transport which is 0.1% and 0.2% negatively associated with PH and SH. Whereas, active transport is 2.0% and 0.2% and public transport is 0.2% and 1.5% positively associated with PH and SH. Replacing short car trips with a sustainable transportation system enhances health parameters and reduces GHG emissions from the transportation sector. ConclusionThe current study concluded that the association was mediated by transport-related PAI which enhances health parameters. Policymakers and practitioners promote transport-related physical activity which may help to enhance health parameters and provide a sustainable transportation system.

An Analysis of the Health Effects of Physical Activity due to Active Travel Policies in Rennes, France.

Rennes, a midsize city in France, features many opportunities for active travel. City officials seek to increase walking and cycling by 2030 to improve public health. Physical inactivity, a leading risk factor for premature mortality around the globe, has been shown to be associated with many chronic diseases including heart disease, type 2 diabetes, and cancer. Using the 2018 household travel survey of Rennes residents, we apply the Health-Oriented Transportation statistical model to assess health impacts associated with population-level rates of walking and cycling. We consider two proposed mobility and climate objectives which outline sustainable transportation goals by 2030. These include a shift in transportation mode share to increase walking and cycling trips, as well as a broad reduction in vehicle miles traveled (VMT) across the metropolitan area. Our regression analysis demonstrated that factors of household car access and inner-city residency were predictors of prevalence (observed one-day proportion engaging in walking or cycling), participation (weekly proportion), and intensity (mean individual physical activity achieved through walking/cycling) of active travel. Age and education were additionally associated with prevalence. The 2030 mobility objective (mode share: 9% cycle, 35% walk) was associated with a reduction of 1,051 DALYs (disability-adjusted life-years), translating to $73 million USD ($23-$177) in averted costs. The climate objective (10% reduction in VMT) was associated with a reduction of 369 DALYs when replaced entirely by walking and 714 DALYs with cycling, translating to $26 million ($8-$62) and $50 million ($15-$121) saved, respectively. Rennes residents experience high participation in active travel, particularly those in the inner city. If residents achieve the city's active travel goals for 2030, there is potential for a large reduction in health burden and subsequent costs. Reaching these goals may require significant investment in transportation programming and infrastructure to improve active travel opportunities.

Does involving another person in day-to-day activity-travel participation affect social and mental health?

IntroductionThis study investigates the effects of different types of social networks within different activities on an individual’s social and mental health in developing countries since the effects of involving other people or social networks on health have been studied particularly in developing countries. MethodsThe data was collected through a survey conducted from August to October 2019. The survey involved 420 individuals from 92 households, covering inputs on their socio-demographics, travel characteristics, time use, and activity diaries and the involvement of various social network types during the activities, travels performed, and Health Quality of Life. Multilevel modelling with a random slope is applied. For time-use and activity-travel participation information, respondents were asked to record their activities and travel within 15-min intervals for 5 consecutive weekdays with 25 activity classifications grouped as mandatory, leisure, and maintenance activities including online activities that could be conducted in or outside the home. It is also recorded whether other people are involved in each time slice of each activity. Companionship within different activities is then disaggregated into different types of social networks, namely other household members, relatives, close friends, and online friends. ResultEngaging with other people is not necessary to gain positive results on social and mental health. Within different types of activities and different contexts, such as in developing countries that have higher percentages of low-income households, much time spent in engagements with other household members can worsen social and mental health. ConclusionIn developing country contexts, better social health might be indicated by having more engagements with other people beyond household members and spending more time on travelling or out-of-home activities. However, more disposable income, more time for socialising and leisure activities, and more engagements with close and online friends all seem to be able to gain positive mental health conditions.

An Analysis of the Health Effects of Physical Activity due to Active Travel Policies in Rennes, France

Background Rennes, a midsize city in France, features many opportunities for active travel. City officials seek to increase walking and cycling by 2030 to improve public health. Physical inactivity, a leading risk factor for premature mortality around the globe, has been shown to be associated with many chronic diseases including heart disease, type 2 diabetes, and cancer. Methods Using the 2018 household travel survey of Rennes residents, we apply the Health-Oriented Transportation statistical model to assess health impacts associated with population-level rates of walking and cycling. We consider two proposed mobility and climate objectives which outline sustainable transportation goals by 2030. These include a shift in transportation mode share to increase walking and cycling trips, as well as a broad reduction in vehicle miles traveled (VMT) across the metropolitan area. Results Our regression analysis demonstrated that factors of household car access and inner-city residency were predictors of prevalence (observed one-day proportion engaging in walking or cycling), participation (weekly proportion), and intensity (mean individual physical activity achieved through walking/cycling) of active travel. Age and education were additionally associated with prevalence. The 2030 mobility objective (mode share: 9% cycle, 35% walk) was associated with a reduction of 1,051 DALYs (disability-adjusted life-years), translating to $73 million USD ($23-$177) in averted costs. The climate objective (10% reduction in VMT) was associated with a reduction of 369 DALYs when replaced entirely by walking and 714 DALYs with cycling, translating to $26 million ($8-$62) and $50 million ($15-$121) saved, respectively. Conclusions Rennes residents experience high participation in active travel, particularly those in the inner city. If residents achieve the city’s active travel goals for 2030, there is potential for a large reduction in health burden and subsequent costs. Reaching these goals may require significant investment in transportation programming and infrastructure to improve active travel opportunities.

Supporting children’s participation in active travel: developing an online road safety intervention through a collaborative integrated knowledge translation approach

ABSTRACT Even though regular engagement in physical activity (PA) among children can support their development and encourage the adoption of healthy lifelong habits, most do not achieve their recommended guidelines. Active travel (AT), or any form of human-powered travel (e.g., walking), can be a relatively accessible, manageable, and sustainable way to promote children’s PA. One common barrier to children’s engagement in AT, however, is a reported lack of education and training. To support children’s participation in AT, this paper presents the development of a comprehensive 4-module online road safety education intervention designed to improve children’s knowledge and confidence regarding AT. Using a qualitative integrated knowledge translation (iKT) approach undertaken with community collaborators (n = 50) containing expertise in health promotion, public safety, school administration, and transportation planning, our inductive thematic analysis generated fourth themes which constituted the foundation of the intervention modules: Active Travel Knowledge: Awareness of Benefits and Participation; Pedestrian Safety and Skills: Roles, Responsibilities, and Rules; Signs and Infrastructure: Identification, Literacy, and Behaviour; Wheeling Safety and Skills: Technical Training and Personal Maneuvers. Each theme/module was then linked to an explicit learning objective and connected to complementary knowledge activities, resources, and skill development exercises. Implications for research and practice are discussed.

Influence of Activity-Travel Participation, Travel Mode Choice, and Multitasking Activities on Subjective Well-Being Using R

Multitasking activities (MTA) are typically thought to enhance general subjective well-being (SWB). However, performing MTA while operating a private vehicle is frequently challenging. Public transportation (PT) can provide an additional option to engage in more pleasurable activities while traveling. Several studies have been conducted on the engagement of different activities while using different transport modes and its influence on physical, social, and mental health. Moreover, numerous studies have been carried out on motorized transport and MTA that resulted in accidents, fatalities, injuries, and even disasters. In addition, several experts studied the influence of health parameters on daily activities. There have, however, only been a few studies on MTA while on PT and its influence on SWB. Therefore, the current study aims to investigate the travel mode choice, the performance of onboard MTA, and its influence on overall SWB. Using random sampling techniques, data on 732 individuals and 191 households—representing 0.029% of the overall population of Bandung, Indonesia—were gathered. Two different models were developed between independent, intermediate, and dependent variables. Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) was used for descriptive statistics, whereas R software was used for the multilevel linear regression analysis. The model estimation results show that MTA mediates the relationship among socio-demographic and economic variables, built environment, trip and travel parameters, and SWB. A unit increase in PT lines can provide a 1.5% greater opportunity to participate in more onboard MTA; however, a unit increase in MTA can enhance SWB by 5.1% where both the models show satisfactory coefficient of determination (R2). A unit increase in motorized transport caused a 12.9% negative association with MTA and 10.9% with SWB. A unit increase in NMT and PT are 21.7% and 10.2% positively associated with MTA and 19.2% and 13.1% positively associated with SWB. The current study helps policymakers to develop a policy based on PT which allows the individuals to engage in more MTA that enhance SWB and target sustainable transportation system.

On the role of subjective well-being in mediating the relationship between spatiotemporal and health variables

IntroductionThe effects of health on various activity-travel patterns have been investigated in various studies. However, it is hard to disregard that activity-travel patterns can also shape the health of individuals. The literature shows that activity-travel patterns insignificantly correlate with health parameters. It is hypothesised that there are some variables such as subjective well-being that intermediate the effects of activity-travel patterns on health. This paper aimed to investigate the role of two subjective well-being variables (daily experience and global subjective well-being) to mediate the effects of spatiotemporal variables on health. The health variables covered physical, mental and social health which refer to people's limitations to engage in various activities including social activities caused by physical, mental and emotional, and emotional problems, respectively. MethodModified structural equation modelling is used to explore whether daily experience and global subjective well-being are intermediate variables between spatiotemporal and health variables. ResultsThe results confirmed that endogenous global subjective well-being mediated the effects of spatiotemporal variables on physical and social health, but not on mental health. Endogenous daily experience was not found to significantly correlate with any health parameters. ConclusionDaily experience is a short-term (cognitive) well-being shaped by people's time and space variables, whereas global subjective well-being is a long-term well-being variable shaped by short-term variables (e.g., daily experience and daily time and space variables) and life circumstances. The long-term well-being variable was found to significantly correlate with health, but not the short-term well-being variable. Opportunities offered by spatial conditions show a higher magnitude in improving people's daily experience and global subjective well-being than the activity-travel participation variables.

Effects of an urban cable car intervention on physical activity: the TrUST natural experiment in Bogotá, Colombia

Cable cars are part of the transport system in several cities in Latin America, but no evaluations of their effects on physical activity are available. TransMiCable is the first cable car in Bogotá, Colombia, and the wider intervention includes renovated parks and playgrounds. We assessed the effects of TransMiCable and the wider intervention on physical activity. The Urban Transformations and Health natural experiment was a prospective quasi-experimental study conducted from Feb 1, 2018, to Dec 18, 2018 (baseline, pre-intervention) and from July 2, 2019, to March 15, 2020 (post-intervention follow-up) in the TransMiCable intervention area (Ciudad Bolívar settlement) and a control area without TransMiCable (San Cristóbal settlement). A multistage strategy was used to sample households in each area, with one adult (aged ≥18 years) per household invited to participate. Eligible participants had lived in the intervention or control areas for at least 2 years and were not planning to move within the next 2 years. Physical activity was assessed among participants in the intervention and control areas before and after the inauguration of TransMiCable in Ciudad Bolívar with the International Physical Activity Questionnaire (long form) and with wearable accelerometers. Complete cases (those with baseline and follow-up data) were included in analyses. Respondents were classed as being physically active if they met 2020 WHO guidelines (≥150 min per week of moderate activity, ≥75 min per week of vigorous activity, or equivalent combinations); and accelerometery data were classified with the Freedson cut-points for adults. Data were also gathered in zonal parks (area ≥10 000 m2) and neighbourhood parks (area <10 000 m2) in the intervention and control areas by direct observation with the System for Observing Play and Recreation in Communities, to assess levels of physical activity before and after the TransMiCable intervention. Multilevel regression models were used to assess changes in physical activity associated with the TransMiCable intervention. Physical activity questionnaires were completed by 2052 adult participants (1289 [62·8%] women and 763 [37·2%] men; mean age 43·5 years [SD 17·7]) before the inauguration of TransMiCable. After the inauguration, the follow-up (final) questionnaire sample comprised 825 adults in the intervention group and 854 in the control group, including 357 adults in the intervention group and 334 in the control group with valid accelerometery data. 334 (40·5%) of 825 participants in the intervention group reported levels of physical activity that met the 2020 WHO guidelines during walking for transport before the intervention, and 426 (51·6%) afterwards (change 11·1 percentage points [95% CI 6·4 to 15·9]). A similar change was observed in the control group (change 8·0 percentage points [3·4 to 12·5]; adjusted odds ratio [OR] for the time-by-group interaction, intervention vs control group: 1·1 [95% CI 0·8 to 1·5], p=0·38). Time spent doing moderate-to-vigorous physical activity, measured with accelerometers, did not change in the intervention group after the inauguration of TransMiCable (change -0·8 min per day [-4·6 to 3·0]) and did not change compared with the control group (adjusted β for the time-by-group interaction: 1·4 min per day [95% CI -2·0 to 4·9], p=0·41). Moderate-to-vigorous physical activity was 52·1 min per day (SD 24·7) before and 59·4 min per day (35·2) after the inauguration of TransMiCable in new regular users who reported using TransMiCable during mandatory trips for work or education (n=32; change 7·3 min per day [-22·5 to 7·9]). After the intervention, an increase in the proportion of male individuals engaging in moderate or vigorous physical activity was observed in a renovated zonal park (adjusted OR for the time-by-group interaction, intervention vs control park: 2·7 [1·1 to 6·8], p=0·033). Female users of a renovated neighbourhood park were less likely to become engaged in moderate or vigorous physical activity than female users of the control area neighbourhood park (adjusted OR for the time-by-group interaction: 0·4 [0·1 to 0·6], p=0·019). It is encouraging that walking for transport remained high in the TransMiCable intervention area when the use of private motorised transport had increased elsewhere in Bogotá. In low-income urban areas, where transport-related walking is a necessity, transport interventions should be focused on efforts to maintain participation in active travel while improving conditions under which it occurs. Wellcome Trust (as part of the Urban Health in Latin America project); Bogotá Urban Planning Department; Ministry of Science, Technology, and Innovation of Colombia; Universidad de Los Andes; Fundación Santa Fe de Bogotá; and Universidad del Norte. For the Spanish translation of the abstract see Supplementary Materials section.

Neighborhood-level COVID-19 hospitalizations and mortality relationships with built environment, active and sedentary travel.

Most of the existing literature concerning the links between built environment and COVID-19 outcomes is based on aggregate spatial data averaged across entire cities or counties. We present neighborhood level results linking census tract-level built environment and active/sedentary travel measures with COVID-19 hospitalization and mortality rates in King County Washington. Substantial variations in COVID-19 outcomes and built environment features existed across neighborhoods. Using rigorous simulation-assisted discrete outcome random parameter models, the results shed new lights on the direct and indirect connections between built environment, travel behavior, positivity, hospitalization, and mortality rates. More mixed land use and greater pedestrian-oriented street connectivity is correlated with lower COVID-19 hospitalization/fatality rates. Greater participation in sedentary travel correlates with higher COVID-19 hospitalization and mortality whereas the reverse is true for greater participation in active travel. COVID-19 hospitalizations strongly mediate the relationships between built environment, active travel, and COVID-19 survival. Ignoring unobserved heterogeneity even when higher resolution smaller area spatial data are harnessed leads to inaccurate conclusions.

Exploring the correlations between spatiotemporal daily activity-travel patterns and stated interest and perception of risk with self-driving cars

Abstract. The key to Autonomous Vehicles (AVs) successful penetration of markets lies in identifying specific needs that AVs satisfy for daily activity-travel participation of individuals. In this paper we explore whether and to what extent people’s exhibited spatiotemporal activity-travel patterns correlate with their stated perceptions about self-driving cars. We investigate the travel diaries of 3,411 survey respondents who live in the Puget Sound region of the U.S. in 2017 using sequence analysis. In parallel, we apply hierarchical clustering to identify people’s attitudes based on their stated interest and perception of risks about AVs. A multinomial regression model is built to examine the correlations between AV attitude clusters and daily activity-travel patterns. Statistically significant correlations are then identified. The model results suggest that people exhibiting different activity-travel behavior patterns also express distinct attitudes towards the uses of AVs. The model shows that people who travel to work during the day are more likely to be positive to AVs. In particular, the group traveling to work later than the regular 8-to-5 schedule shows stronger interest and less concerns to AVs, which can be partially explained by the diverse activities they do throughout the day, the variety of travel modes they use and presumably more schedule flexibility they need than the public transportation system offers.

A study of tour formation: pre-, during, and post-recession analysis

This study examines changes in activity-travel patterns of employed people during a recession by using a tour-based representation of the activity-based approach. The term tour is defined as a sequence of trips and activities that begins and ends at home and contains at least one non-home activity. Tours are classified based on the presence of work and/or non-work activities. We are interested in investigating how a recession can affect an individual’s tour choices. We developed a rigorous methodological framework by using multi-group structural equation modeling (SEM) to analyze changes in tour choice. In particular, we developed a causal structure conceptualsizing the interrelationships among socio-demographic and economic characteristics, activity-travel participation, and the choice of various work and non-work tours. Using data from the American Time Use Survey (ATUS), the study found that activity-travel relationships and their role in tour choice differed in the recession year (2009) compared to pre- and post-recession years (2009 and 2012, respectively). By analyzing temporal changes in causal structure, we identified four sub-trend groups defined by: (1) norms that did not change in pre-, during, and post-recession years, (2) norms that changed during the recession but returned to the old norm, (3) norms that changed during the recession and were maintained as new norm, and finally (4) 2006 norms that did not change during the 2009 recession but changed after the recession. Via analysis of multiple group SEM, we identified instances of each of these cases and provided potential rationales in the context of how a recession can influence norms and thus can affect activity-travel behavior.

Activity-travel participation, multitasking in travel and daily well-being

Using hierarchical liniear regression and multi-dimensional three-week household time-use and activity diary, this study investigated the interaction among spatiotemporal variables on percentage time of engaging multitasking in travel, and how endogenous of percentage time of engaging multitasking in travel interact with other spatiotemporal variables on individuals’ daily subjective well-being. Different from descriptive analysis result, the result in using hierarchical linear regression shows that having tighter time-space constraints tend to positively correlate with performing multitasking activities within travel more often. Moreover, the ones who peform more trips such as the youngest travellers and someone from middle income tend to perform multitasking activities in travel more often. Endogenous of percentage time of engaging multitasking in travel shows positive correlation on improving someone’s daily well-being, as expected. In term of policy implication, undertaking passive leisure within travel can be suggested to improve someone’s daily well-being. The opportunity to undertake passive leisure within travel can be an advantage of using public transport.

Domain-specific physical activity and affective wellbeing among adolescents: an observational study of the moderating roles of autonomous and controlled motivation

BackgroundAbundant evidence demonstrates a relationship between physical activity and mental wellbeing. However, the strength of the relationship is not consistent. Factors contributing to variation in the strength of association are not well understood and, therefore, it remains difficult to optimize physical activity to ensure the strongest possible relationship with mental health. Self-determination theory suggests that more autonomously motivated behaviors lead to better mental health outcomes, when compared to more controlled behaviors. Therefore, we examined whether autonomous and controlled motivation moderated the relationships between physical activity and affective wellbeing within two domains (i.e., leisure-time and active travel).MethodsBetween February and April 2014, adolescents (N = 1632, M age = 12.94 years, SD = 0.54, 55% male) wore an accelerometer across seven-days and completed self-report measures of leisure-time physical activity and active travel. They also completed two measures of motivation (towards leisure-time physical activity and active travel) and an affective wellbeing measure.ResultsStructural equation modeling revealed that greater self-reported leisure-time physical activity was associated with greater positive affect (β = .29) and less negative affect (β = −.19) and that motivation did not moderate these relationships. Self-reported active travel had no linear relationship with affective wellbeing, and motivation did not moderate these relationships. Accelerometer-measured leisure-time physical activity had no relationship with positive affect but, had a weak inverse association with negative affect (β = −.09), and neither relationship was moderated by motivation. Accelerometer-measured active travel had no association with positive affect; however, autonomous motivation significantly moderated this association such that active travel had a positive association with positive affect when autonomous motivation was high (β = .09), but a negative association when autonomous motivation was low (β = −.07). Accelerometer-measured active travel had no association with negative affect. Despite some significant moderation effects, motivation did not consistently moderate the relationship between all physical activity variables (leisure-time and active travel, and self-report and accelerometer) and affective outcomes.ConclusionsTailoring physical activity interventions and guidelines to prioritize leisure-time ahead of other life domains could benefit wellbeing. Promoting autonomous participation in active travel may also be associated with increased wellbeing among adolescents.

Modeling the Structural Relationships of Activity-Travel Participation of Working Women

The structural relationships between work and non-work activity participation and associated travel engagements are developed for single working mothers and married working mothers. Multiple-group structural equation modeling (SEM) is used to analyze the relationships between work and non-work time usage of the two groups for both in-home and out-of-home contexts. Non-work activities are childcare, maintenance, and discretionary activities. In addition to revealing interrelationships between work and non-work activity participation for each group, this multiple-group SEM model allows for the comparison of how these relationships differ across the two study groups. Data were obtained from the American Time Use Survey for 2012. The resulting model shows that these two groups demonstrate statistically significant differences in their activity interactions in terms of how participation in an activity affects the duration of other activities and travel. The model also captures the different degree of impacts of household and person-level socio-demographic characteristics (exogenous effects) of these two groups on activity participation (activity duration) and travel engagement (travel time). The findings of this research advance the understanding of the activity participation and time-allocation decisions made by working mothers, which can lead toward policy formulation for them in terms of social, land-use planning, and activity-based approach perspectives.

The changes of activity-travel participation across gender, life-cycle, and generations in Sweden over 30\xa0years

This study utilised the Swedish national travel survey covering a period of over 30 years. We investigated the long-term trends in activity-travel patterns of individuals in different life-cycle stages and generations using cohort analysis and a path model. The main findings are summarised as follows. The women, including mothers, in younger generations have become more active in out-of-home non-work activities and their trip chaining has become more complex, compared to their male counterparts. While men are still driving more than women, the gap is decreasing in the younger generations. The gender difference among teenagers in terms of out-of-home time use diminishes in younger generations. Teenagers of younger generations spend more of their leisure time inside their homes, possibly due to the rise of online activities and gaming and more time-consuming school trips, the latter attributed to changes in school choice policy. Older adults travel more, possibly due to better paratransit transport service, supported by better health services.

Joint Model of Weekend Discretionary Activity Participation and Episode Duration

Research on travel demand modeling has primarily focused on weekday activity–travel patterns. However, weekend activities and travel constitute a major component of individuals’ overall weekly activity–travel participation. This paper describes a modeling effort that focuses on weekend activity–travel demand for discretionary events. This study bridges the gap in the literature by modeling participation in discretionary types of events, the duration of participation, and accompaniment type jointly in a simultaneous equations model system. A joint discrete–continuous modeling framework is formulated for analysis of these dimensions as a choice bundle. Specifically, the combination of event type and accompaniment type constitutes the discrete component, whereas the duration of participation constitutes the continuous component. The model uses a copula-based sample selection approach that ties the discrete choice error component with the duration error component in a flexible manner. The data used in the paper are drawn from the 2008–2009 National Household Travel Survey sample of the greater Phoenix metropolitan area in Arizona. The results from the estimation process highlight the presence of sample selection in the joint modeling context. Furthermore, the results also highlight the flexibility of copula models in capturing such sample selection. The best copula model results are used to generate hazard profiles for various alternative related duration intervals. The generated profiles highlight the inaccurate predictions obtained by the use of approaches that ignore the presence of sample selection.

The contribution of active travel to children's physical activity levels: Cross-sectional results from the ALSPAC study

Objective To assess the association between active travel to school and physical activity (PA) in a large population-based sample of 11-year old children. Method Cross-sectional analyses using data from the Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children (Bristol, UK), collected in 2002–2004. The analyses include all children providing valid data on objectively measured PA (Actigraph accelerometer), and having parent-proxy reported data on travel mode (walk, cycle, public transport, car) and distance to school ( N = 4688). Results 43.5% of children regularly walked or cycled to school (i.e. on every or most days). Compared with car travelers, walking to school was associated with 5.98 (95%CI: 3.82–8.14) more minutes of moderate-to-vigorous PA (MVPA) on weekdays in those living 0.5–1 miles from school, and with 9.77 (95%CI: 7.47–12.06) more minutes in those living at 1–5 miles. This equates to 24.6 to 40.2% of the average daily minutes of MVPA. Only modest differences were observed in those living < 0.5 mile from school. Conclusion Children who regularly walk to school are more active during the week than those travelling by car, especially if the distance is > 0.5 mile. Increasing participation in active travel might be a useful part of an overall strategy to increase population PA.