Is It Safe? How Does Safety Play a Role in a Child’s Mode of Travel Between Home and School?

This study examined how both personal and traffic safety influenced a child’s mode of travel to/from school and how these concerns varied by population, built and social environment. Semi-structured interviews were conducted (n=37) with parents and their children at four schools of contrasting built and social environments within the City of Toronto. Thematic analysis of the interview transcripts was conducted. Comparative analyses of the data were explored by the environment (built and social), population (parent and child) and mode of travel. Personal safety concerns such as ‘stranger danger,’ bullies and dogs, along with traffic safety at street crossings and around the school emerged as the primary concerns for parents and children. It is difficult to alleviate parental fears of strangers, although they do decrease as the child gets older. For children, traveling in groups and ensuring dogs are on leashes can reduce personal safety fears. Personal safety was more of a concern in low income neighborhoods, whereas traffic safety was much more prevalent of an issue in inner-suburban areas. Furthermore, traffic concerns were more of an issue for non-active travellers. The findings of this research give evidence that mode choice is associated with safety and these concerns vary by environment, population and mode of travel.