By 1995, children made only 9.9 percent of their trips by foot or bicycle, a 37 percent decline. Children now make a majority almost 70 percent of their trips in the back seat of a car. The influence of community design on the decision of whether or not to walk is made clear by looking at the trend in the number of children who walk to school. Schools are increasingly isolated from the communities they serve. New schools may be placed on the edge of communities, and wide, busy thoroughfares prevent children from biking or walking to school.
Many communities experience traffic jams around schools as parents deliver children to the door.
Women with school-aged children now make more car trips each day than any other population group, and on average spend more than an hour a day in the car. Hazards such as busy streets are forcing more children who live within walking distance to board a bus instead. In an editorial in its journal, the AMA noted that car trips have replaced trips that used to be made on foot or by bicycle, and says helping people get back to walking or bicycling should be a first target in combating the obesity epidemic. The Centers for Disease Control estimates that 300,000 Americans die each year from diseases associated with physical inactivity. Even modest physical activity, such as walking, can decrease the risk of coronary heart disease, high blood pressure, colon cancer, diabetes, and even depression.