Environmental and social barriers to active school transport in the Colombian Caribbean region

Abstract

Introduction: Lack of physical activity and high obesity rates in children and adolescents are major public health concerns. Active school transport is a strategy that can contribute to achieving recommended physical activity levels. Objective: To determine the relationship between the use of active school transport by children from the Colombian Caribbean region and their parents’ perception of barriers to active school transport. Materials and methods: Cross-sectional study conducted in 2019 with data from 3 067 primary school children from the Colombian Caribbean region. Data were obtained by administering an ad hoc questionnaire (questions on how children commuted to school and about their academic and sociodemographic characteristics) and the Active School Transport Barriers scale to the parents or legal guardians of the children. A multivariate logistic regression analysis was performed in which Odds ratios (OR) and their respective 95% confidence intervals (95%CI) were calculated to determine the relationship between the modality of transportation to school (active/passive) and the barriers to active school transport perceived by the students’ parents. Results: A total of 51.3% of the schoolchildren actively transported to school. Factors such as considering that the roads are not appealing (OR=1.64; 95%CI: 1.39-1.94), that there are dangerous road crossings on the route (OR=1.29; 95%CI: 1.1-1.54), that the distance between home and school is very long (OR=1.83; 95%CI: 1.5-2.1), and that the traffic on the route is heavy, (OR=1.5; 95%CI: 1.2-1.8) increased the probability of passive transportation (i.e., using motor vehicles). Conclusion: In the present study, long distances between home and school, aesthetics of roads, heavy traffic on the route, and insecurity of road crossings, among others, were identified as barriers to the use of active school transport.