Radio Commentary
Just a few generations ago, in the 1950s and 60s, half of all children
bicycled or walked to school. Today, only one in 10 does so.
In fact, even among school-age
children who live within two miles of school, only about two percent ride
bicycles to get there. These figures have implications for health, fitness, and
safety.
The Santa Barbara Bicycle Coalition
cites several major reasons for the decline:
• As we widened roads for cars, we decreased
safety for bikers and walkers, leading to a lack of area for children to walk
and bike safely.
• Excessive media stories about the dangers
of child abductions, gun violence, drugs, and other real-but-overblown-concerns
add to a sense of danger and worry for parents. The truth is that automobiles
are by far a bigger threat to children than all these other potential threats
combined.
• With both parents working, for longer
hours, many try to compensate through the perceived ‘gift’ of driving children
around.
These changes have contributed to
increased rates of obesity among young people.
They have also helped foster a loss
of independence that comes from bicycling.
As was the
case with recycling and smoking, it will take shifts of awareness and attitude
to change the current condition. We should all try to help.
