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Assessing Walking and Cycling around Schools

Author

Listed:
  • Khaled Shaaban

    (Department of Engineering, Utah Valley University, 800 W University Pkwy, Orem, UT 84058, USA)

  • Khadija Abdur-Rouf

    (Department of Civil Engineering, Qatar University, P.O. Box 2713 Doha, Qatar)

Abstract

To encourage students to walk and cycle to school and ensure their health and safety, it is essential to provide safe and operationally efficient infrastructure around schools. This study used an audit tool to assess the infrastructure and environment around schools in the city of Doha, Qatar, with a particular emphasis on active transport (walking and cycling). The aim was to identify strengths, weaknesses, and areas for improvement. Twenty-two schools with varied education levels were assessed. Among all assessed categories, active transport items scored the lowest, requiring the most improvements. A detailed analysis was conducted based on school type (elementary, primary, high, and mixed-schools) and revealed similar results except for elementary schools (scored acceptable for active transport). The study revealed that adding bike lanes, installing bicycle parking, and providing good separation of travel modes are the most needed improvements at school sites. In summary, improving active transport could significantly improve the overall quality of the infrastructure around schools in Qatar. Such improvements could greatly encourage more school children to walk and cycle to school instead of being primarily dropped-off and picked up by their parents’ vehicles or school buses.

Suggested Citation

  • Khaled Shaaban & Khadija Abdur-Rouf, 2020. "Assessing Walking and Cycling around Schools," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(24), pages 1-14, December.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:12:y:2020:i:24:p:10607-:d:464821
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    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Khaled Shaaban, 2019. "Assessing Sidewalk and Corridor Walkability in Developing Countries," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(14), pages 1-19, July.
    2. Khaled Shaaban, 2020. "Why Don’t People Ride Bicycles in High-Income Developing Countries, and Can Bike-Sharing Be the Solution? The Case of Qatar," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(4), pages 1-18, February.
    3. Khaled Shaaban & Khadija Abdur-Rouf, 2019. "Development, Validation, and Application of School Audit Tool (SAT): An Effective Instrument for Assessing Traffic Safety and Operation Around Schools," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(22), pages 1-19, November.
    4. Khaled Shaaban & Deepti Muley & Dina Elnashar, 2018. "Evaluating the effect of seasonal variations on walking behaviour in a hot weather country using logistic regression," International Journal of Urban Sciences, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 22(3), pages 382-391, July.
    5. Christiansen, Lars B. & Toftager, Mette & Schipperijn, Jasper & Ersbøll, Annette K. & Giles-Corti, Billie & Troelsen, Jens, 2014. "School site walkability and active school transport – association, mediation and moderation," Journal of Transport Geography, Elsevier, vol. 34(C), pages 7-15.
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    Cited by:

    1. Yue Yang & Yongsheng Qian & Junwei Zeng & Xuting Wei & Minan Yang, 2023. "Walkability Measurement of 15-Minute Community Life Circle in Shanghai," Land, MDPI, vol. 12(1), pages 1-13, January.
    2. Jonas Schmid-Querg & Andreas Keler & Georgios Grigoropoulos, 2021. "The Munich Bikeability Index: A Practical Approach for Measuring Urban Bikeability," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(1), pages 1-14, January.

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