Active school transport among czech adolescents declined between 2006 and 2022: HBSC study findings

Result code in IS VaVaI

<a href="https://www.isvavai.cz/riv?ss=detail&h=RIV%2F61989592%3A15510%2F25%3A73633738" target="_blank" >RIV/61989592:15510/25:73633738 - isvavai.cz</a>

Result on the web

<a href="https://cejph.szu.cz/pdfs/cjp/2025/04/05.pdf" target="_blank" >https://cejph.szu.cz/pdfs/cjp/2025/04/05.pdf</a>

DOI - Digital Object Identifier

<a href="http://dx.doi.org/10.21101/cejph.a8713" target="_blank" >10.21101/cejph.a8713</a>

Result language

angličtina

Original language name

Active school transport among czech adolescents declined between 2006 and 2022: HBSC study findings

Original language description

Objectives: Active school transport (AST), such as walking or cycling to and from school, represents an important source of daily physical activity for adolescents. In recent decades, however, many high-income countries have reported a steady decline in AST. The main objective of this study was to describe long-term trends in active travel to and from school among Czech adolescents aged 11, 13 and 15 years, using nationally representative data collected in five waves of the Health Behaviour in School-aged Children (HBSC) study between 2006 and 2022.Methods: The analysis is based on a total sample of 50,813 adolescents (25,628 boys, 25,085 girls) aged 10.5–16.5 years, with valid self- reported data on travel modes to and from school. AST was defined as walking or cycling as the primary mode of transport. The prevalence of AST was analysed over time by gender and age category. Binary logistic regression was used to assess the associations between AST and survey year, gender, age group, socioeconomic status (Family Affluence Scale), and commuting time to school.Results: Between 2006 and 2022, the prevalence of AST to school declined from 71.6% to 54.9% among boys and from 71.8% to 54.8% among girls. A similar trend was observed for AST from school, although participation remained consistently higher than in the morning. The strongest negative predictors of AST were longer commuting time and higher socioeconomic status. Girls had slightly lower odds of AST than boys, and older adolescents (only in fully adjusted models) were more likely to engage in AST.Conclusions: The long-term decline in AST among Czech adolescents highlights the need for targeted public health and urban planning strategies. In particular, the lower rates of AST to school suggest potential opportunities for morning-focused interventions.

Czech name

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Czech description

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Type

J_imp - Article in a specialist periodical, which is included in the Web of Science database

CEP classification

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OECD FORD branch

30306 - Sport and fitness sciences

Project

—

Continuities

O - Projekt operacniho programu

Publication year

2025

Confidentiality

S - Úplné a pravdivé údaje o projektu nepodléhají ochraně podle zvláštních právních předpisů

Name of the periodical

Central European Journal of Public Health

ISSN

1210-7778

e-ISSN

1803-1048

Volume of the periodical

33

Issue of the periodical within the volume

4

Country of publishing house

CZ - CZECH REPUBLIC

Number of pages

6

Pages from-to

267-272

UT code for WoS article

001669496400006

EID of the result in the Scopus database

2-s2.0-105027821660