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Longitudinal associations between weather, season, and mode of commuting to school amongst Spanish youths

  • Manu Herrador-Colmenero
  • , Florence Harrison
  • , Emilio Villa-González
  • , Carlos Rodríguez-López
  • , Francisco Ortega
  • , Jonatan Ruiz
  • , Andrew Jones
  • , Palma Chillón

Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review

17 Citations (Scopus)
27 Downloads (Pure)

Abstract

Aim: To study the associations of weather conditions with the travel mode choice for commuting to and from school. 
Methods: A total of 6,979 Spanish youths aged 7 to 18 years old (80% adolescents aged 12‐18 years old, 51% male) completed a 5‐day survey of mode of commuting to school in autumn, winter, and spring. Weather data from the nearest weather station to each school was registered. We used Google Maps™ to calculate the distance from home to school. Multilevel logistic regression models were used to estimate odds of active travel based on weather and season. 
Results: We analysed a total of 163,846 discrete journeys. In winter, children (aged 7 to 11 years old) were less likely to choose an active mode of commuting to school (OR: 0.72, 95% CI: 0.59‐0.89, p=0.003). In spring, adolescents were more likely to choose an active mode of commuting to school (OR: 1.43, 95% CI: 1.19‐1.73, p<0.001). With higher mean temperatures, adolescents were more likely to choose an active mode of commuting from school (OR: 1.02, 95% CI: 1.00‐1.04, p=0.029). 
Conclusion: Certain weather conditions seem to influence the travel mode choice for commuting to and from school in youth, including season and temperature.
Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)2677-2685
Number of pages9
JournalScandinavian Journal of Medicine and Science in Sports
Volume28
Issue number12
Early online date19 Jul 2018
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - Dec 2018

Keywords

  • Transportation
  • Journey
  • Health Behavior
  • Student
  • Climate

Access to Document

    • UKCRC Centre of Excellence in Diet and Physical Activity Public Health Research (CEDAR)

      Hancock, R. (Principal Investigator), Wareham, N. (Principal Investigator), Bingham, S. (Co-Investigator), Brayne, C. (Co-Investigator), Cambridge, D. (Co-Investigator), Cambridge, D. (Co-Investigator), Danesh, J. (Co-Investigator), Ekelund, U. (Co-Investigator), Griffin, S. (Co-Investigator), Griffin, S. (Co-Investigator), Harvey, I. (Co-Investigator), Jebb, S. (Co-Investigator), Khaw, K.-T. (Co-Investigator), Kinmouth, A. (Co-Investigator), Ong, K. (Co-Investigator), Pencheon, D. (Co-Investigator), Prentice, A. (Co-Investigator), Robinson, A. (Co-Investigator), Stephen, A. (Co-Investigator), Sutton, S. (Co-Investigator), Thompson, S. (Co-Investigator) & Van-Sluijs, E. (Co-Investigator)

      Economic and Social Research Council

      1/10/08 → 30/09/14

      Project: Research

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