Greater Toronto & Hamilton Area School Travel Household Attitudinal Study

2 Methodology overview A total of 1,001 English interviews were conducted with parents and guardians of the Greater Toronto and Hamilton Area (GTHA) Respondents were asked questions about school travel related to their ‘eldest child attending elementary school’ (i.e. Kindergarten to Grade 8) The survey was conducted over the course of three weeks, including pretest and fieldwork (September-October) Sample was drawn based on Census Division (CD). The table below displays weighted and unweighted totals and margins of error, by CD CDPOP’N Unweighted TOTAL Weighted TOTAL Margin of Error Hamilton504, ±6.19 Halton439, ±11.32 Peel1,159, ±6.2 Toronto2,503, ±6.2 York892, ±9.8 Durham561, ±11.32 TOTAL6,060,4751,001 ±3.1 Oversampling was conducted in Hamilton and Peel to ensure adequate representation for analysis The final dataset is weighted by the child’s gender and grade, and by CD. Population totals were derived from the 2006 Census

3 GTHA School Travel Household Attitudinal Study Objectives –Examine current school travel mode split, including: By area, by grade, by distance Compare to school versus home from school Look at threshold distance for walking-driving Determine main reasons for mode choice Look at parent school travel mode vs child school travel mode –Profile: Active Travel, Auto Travel, Carpool Travel –Identify school travel-related issues and concerns –Gauge awareness of school travel programs and infrastructure –Identify potential target market for a shift towards sustainable and active school travel

4 Respondent Profile OverallHamiltonPeel AGE %27%25% %49%48% %16%20% 55 and over 4%5%4% RELATION TO CHILDREN IN HOUSEHOLD Parent 94% 93% Other relative 3%4%3% Older sibling 1%-3% Step-parent 1% EMPLOYMENT STATUS Employed FT 61%57%59% Employed PT 10%14%8% Not Working 22%24%25% Student 2%3%4% HOUSEHOLD INCOME (CAD) Less than 35 thousand 11%13%10% 35 to 65 thousand 19%17%24% 65 to 95 thousand 17%23%21% 95 to 125 thousand 14%18%10% Over 125 thousand 17%10%13% OverallHamiltonPeel GENDER Male38%31%34% Female62%69%66% LANGUAGE SPOKEN AT HOME English82%94%76% French4%3%4% Chinese (Mand. or Canton.)4%-2% Urdu3%1%8% Panjabi/Punjabi2%-10% Other21%12%24% TIME SPENT WALKING DAILY 15 minutes or less18%15%19% 16 to 30 minutes35%31%39% 31 to 60 minutes29%26% More than 1 hour12%26%14% Mean (minutes) # OF CHILDREN IN HOUSEHOLD ATTENDING ELEMENTARY SCHOOL One59%60%58% Two33%31%34% Three or more8% Mean (children)1.5

5 Transportation Profile ELDEST CHILD ATTENDING ELEMENTARY SCHOOL

6 Q1E. How does your child usually travel to school? Q1F. How does your child usually travel home from school? Q1E. Base: All respondents (N=1,001); Q1F. Base: All respondents (N=1,001) Mode of travel to and from school

7 Q1E/Q1F. How does your child usually travel to and home from school? Q1E. Base: All respondents (N=1,001), ~9% (N=87); Q1F. Base: All respondents (N=1,001), ~9% (N=87) Differing modes of travel to and from school Nine percent of respondents’ children travelled to and from school by different modes. We find a few patterns within this group: Modes of travel% Driven to school, walk home44.0% Driven to school, ride school bus home10.7% Driven to school, ride public transit home10.2% Ride school bus to school, driven home7.1% Walk to school, driven home6.1% Other (collapsed due to sample size; e.g. school bus to school, walk home) 21.8%

8 Q1E. How does your child usually travel to school? Q1E. Base: All respondents (N=1,001) Mode of school travel – by grade

9 Q1F. How does your child usually travel home from school? Q1F. Base: All respondents (N=1,001) Mode of travel home from school – by grade

10 Q1E/Q1F. How does your child usually travel to and home from school? Q1E/Q1F. Base: All respondents (N=1,001) Mode of school travel – by distance to school Overall Live within 1 km of child’s school Live between 1 and 2 km of child’s school Live more than 2 km from child’s school

11 Q1E/Q1F. How does your child usually travel to and home from school? Q1E/Q1F. Base: All respondents (N=1,001) Walking to school – threshold distance

12 Q1E/Q1F. How does your child usually travel to and home from school? Mode of school travel – by area Q1E/Q1F. Base: All respondents (N=1,001) Overall Peel Hamilton

13 Main reason for mode choice PREFERRED NO OTHER OPTIONS CONCERNS ABOUT OTHER METHODS DRIVEN TO SCHOOL BY A HOUSEHOLD MEMBER 42%38%24% RIDING THE SCHOOL BUS 44%47%8% ACTIVE METHOD (walking or cycling) 73%20%3%

14 Correlation between parent’s mode of school travel and child’s mode of school travel DRIVEN TO SCHOOL RIDING THE SCHOOL BUS or PUBLIC TRANSIT ACTIVE METHOD (walking or cycling) DRIVEN TO SCHOOL 55%28%38% RIDING THE SCHOOL BUS or PUBLIC TRANSIT 23%37%20% ACTIVE METHOD (walking or cycling) 22%35%42% Parent’s Mode Child’s Mode

15 Transportation Profile: ACTIVE MODES ELDEST CHILD ATTENDING ELEMENTARY SCHOOL

16 Q1E3/Q1F3. Does your child travel to/ from school with other school-aged children? Q1E3A/Q1F3A. Is this as part of a group organized by the school or community? Q1E3/Q1E3A. Base: Respondents whose child walks or bikes to school (N=384) Q1F3/Q1F3A. Base: Respondents whose child walks or bikes home from school (N=401) Travel with other children Overall Peel Hamilton

17 Q1E3. Does your child travel to school with other school-aged children? Q1E7. Is your child accompanied by an adult when they walk/bike to school? Q1E3/Q1E7. Base: Respondents whose child walks or bikes to school (N=384) Active travel with adults and children

18 Profile: “Active Travellers” OVERALLACTIVE TRAVELLERS (N=417) DISTANCE TO SCHOOL <1KM33%63% 1-2KM27%23% >2KM32%7% DRIVERS & CARS IN HOUSEHOLD None2%4% One driver16%20% Two+ drivers; one car23% Two+ drivers & two+ cars59%53% HOUSEHOLD INCOME <$35K11%13% $35K to $65K19% $65K to $95K17%21% $95K to $125K14% >$125K17%14%

19 Q18. Is your child's school close enough that they could reasonably walk to school on a regular basis? Child’s school within walking distance Q18. Base: All respondents (N=984)

20 Q21A. There are safe bike routes or paths around the school. Active and safe routes to school Q21A. Base: Respondents whose child’s school is close enough for them to reasonably walk or bike (N=680) Q21D. I have discussed how to walk or bike to school safely with my child.

21 Q21H. It is important to me that my child gets exercise while travelling to and from school. Importance of exercise & environment Q21H/I. Base: All respondents (N=984) Q21I. It is important to me that my child gets to and from school in an environment- friendly way.

22 Transportation Profile: DRIVEN ELDEST CHILD ATTENDING ELEMENTARY SCHOOL

23 Q1E2/Q1F2. When the adult drives your child to/from school, is this part of a commute to/from work, a commute to/from another destination, or is the main purpose of the trip to drop off/pick up your child at school? Q1E2. Base: Respondents whose child is driven to school (N=314) Q1F2. Base: Respondents whose child is driven home from school (N=277) Purpose of adult’s trip Overall Peel Hamilton

24 Profile: “Auto Travellers” OVERALLAUTO TRAVELLERS (N=329) DISTANCE TO SCHOOL <1KM33%20% 1-2KM27%33% >2KM32%37% DRIVERS & CARS IN HOUSEHOLD None2%0% One driver16%9% Two or more drivers; one car23%19% Two or more drivers & two or more cars59%71% HOUSEHOLD INCOME <$35K11%6% $35K to $65K19%15% $65K to $95K17%18% $95K to $125K14%18% >$125K17%22%

25 Transportation Profile: CARPOOLING ELDEST CHILD ATTENDING ELEMENTARY SCHOOL

26 Q14. Are there times that you participate in a carpool for school travel with neighbours or friends? Participation in carpools Q14. Base: All respondents (N=984)

27 Q21E. A list of nearby parents who would like to carpool would be useful to me. Interest in a carpool list Q21E. Base: Respondents whose child is driven to school by a member of their household, and would be comfortable with them participating in a carpool (N=244)

28 Profile: Potential Carpoolers OVERALLINTERESTED IN CARPOOLING (N=179) DISTANCE TO SCHOOL <1KM33%18% 1-2KM27%33% >2KM32%42% DRIVERS & CARS IN HOUSEHOLD None2%0% One driver16%6% Two or more drivers; one car23%18% Two or more drivers & two or more cars59%75% HOUSEHOLD INCOME <$35K11%3% $35K to $65K19%17% $65K to $95K17%23% $95K to $125K14%17% >$125K17%25%

29 Interest in Alternative Modes ELDEST CHILD ATTENDING ELEMENTARY SCHOOL

30 Q21G. I'm interested in considering alternatives to the way that my child currently travels. Interest in considering alternatives Q21G. Base: All respondents (N=984)

31 School Travel Issues and Concerns ELDEST CHILD ATTENDING ELEMENTARY SCHOOL

32 Neighbourhood safety Q21A. Base: Respondents whose child’s school is close enough for them to reasonably walk or bike (N=680) Q21B. People drive safely enough in my neighbourhood. Q21C. I worry about strangers or bullies approaching my child if they travel alone.

33 Program Awareness RESPONDENT/HOUSEHOLD

34 Q22. Are you aware of any programs in your area designed to promote walking, biking or carpooling for school travel? Awareness of programs Q22. Base: All respondents (N=1,001)

35 Q23. Have you heard of each of the following programs? Awareness of Specific Programs Q23. Base: All respondents (N=1,001) International Walk to School Day or Month (iWalk) Walking or Cycling School Bus Carpool Zone CAN-BIKE

36 School Travel Infrastructure and Programs ELDEST CHILD ATTENDING ELEMENTARY SCHOOL

37 Q24. Does your child's school offer… School Travel Infrastructure Q24. Base: All respondents (N=1,001) Sidewalks leading to the school entrance Crossing guards and marked crossings at the school Bicycle parking A student drop off area for automobiles

38 Q24. Does your child's school offer… School Travel Programs Q24. Base: All respondents (N=1,001) Walking safety education, special events or programs Cycling safety education, special events or programs Maps of the best or safest routes to school A carpool matching service or list

39 Key target markets ELDEST CHILD ATTENDING ELEMENTARY SCHOOL

40 Profile: “Close Drivers” OVERALLCLOSE DRIVERS (N=160) DISTANCE TO SCHOOL <1KM33%39% 1-2KM27%41% >2KM32%14% DRIVERS & CARS IN HOUSEHOLD None2%0% One driver16%10% Two or more drivers; one car23%18% Two or more drivers & two or more cars59%72% HOUSEHOLD INCOME <$35K11%8% $35K to $65K19%16% $65K to $95K17%20% $95K to $125K14%17% >$125K17%

41 Those who do not use available school bus service OVERALLTHOSE WHO DO NOT USE AVAILABLE SCHOOL BUS SERVICE (N=88) DISTANCE TO SCHOOL <1KM33%14% 1-2KM27%33% >2KM32%47% DRIVERS & CARS IN HOUSEHOLD None2%0% One driver16%5% Two or more drivers; one car23%16% Two or more drivers & two or more cars59%78% HOUSEHOLD INCOME <$35K11%4% $35K to $65K19%12% $65K to $95K17% $95K to $125K14%17% >$125K17%32%

42 Convenience and Appeal of Alternate modes CARPOOL SCHOOL BUS PUBLIC TRANIST WALK OR BIKE WITH PARENT WALK OR BIKE WITH GROUP WALK OR BIKE ALONE CONVENIENCE66% 24%50%78%71% APPEAL73%64%26%62%76%88% CHILD ’ S INTEREST69%70%25%66%64%50% CONVENENT AND APPEALING 59%53%16%31%55%56% COLUMN ‘ N ’ Base: Respondents whose child is driven to or home from school & for whom the alternate method is available

43 Final Study Report to be available at: Jennifer Lay School-based TDM Coordinator, Metrolinx