Students’ and Parents’ perceptions of barriers to cycling to school—an analysis by gender

Internationally, there is increased emphasis on the need to reduce dependency on cars and to encourage more sustainable forms of travel, including active travel. To encourage increased levels of cycling, the focus has generally been on improving cycling infrastructure and on making cycling safer. While cycling rates have increased in many countries, including Ireland, women are often less likely to cycle than men. While there are some notable exceptions to this (for example, in the Netherlands) this phenomenon of lower cycling rates amongst women is common and research shows that the differences between male and female cycling rates can be seen from an early age. This paper explores the reasons why women are less likely to cycle than men, by examining the modal choices of school-going students, and the attitudes of their parents/guardians to their modal choices. The survey was conducted in the city of Limerick in the midwestern region of Ireland. The results show multi-factorial barriers to cycling to school for girls compared to boys. Uniforms, traffic concerns, physical efforts of cycling, effects on personal appearance, and peer-influences were factors affecting girls more than boys. Male parents/guardians did not significantly differentiate by the gender of their children in relation to factors associated with cycling to school, unlike female parents/guardians who were found to be significantly less supportive of their daughters than their sons. Additionally, parents/guardians were generally more likely to afford their male children greater independence in their school travel choices. While there are many considerations that would affect students’ perceptions towards cycling, an adjustment to the school uniform policy would, at least, remove the most significant barrier for girls. Further research must be carried out to determine how to shift the perceptions of the efforts associated with cycling, especially among girls, and how to encourage female parents/guardians to better support their daughters to cycle to school.