The research on Travel to Education patterns was undertaken among 147,000 respondents in schools and colleges across the greater Dublin region (Dublin, Meath, Kildare, Wicklow), between September and November 2006, and was benchmarked against the 2002 census to get a picture of current travel habits and trends.

Findings include:

• 40% of all travel to education in the Greater Dublin Area is now by car, the equivalent of about 125,000 pupils and students each day, and an overall 6% increase since 2002.
• 55% of all respondents travel 2km or less to their school or college. 
• Half of all primary schoolchildren in Dublin and surrounding counties are now driven to school, up by more than 3% from the 2002 census figures.
• 31% of all secondary school students go to school by car, up by 8% since 2002.
• There has been a significant drop in the proportion of students using the bus to get to school / college, down from 23% in 2002 to 18% in 2006.  
• 36% of primary students walk to school (secondary: 35% / third level 22%).
• There are now over 3,000 fewer walking trips to school every day, down by over 1% from 2002.
• Only 5% of secondary level students cycle to school (primary level: 2%).
• Just 3% of secondary students use DART, Luas or Rail transport.  These options are rarely used to get primary children to school.
• Across all modes of transport, 56% of all respondents said it takes fifteen minutes or less to get to their school or college.  80% said it takes them less than 30 minutes.
• In the third level sector, over half (54%) of all students use public transport to get to college.  The rest walk (22%), cycle (6%) or take the car (18%).
  
  
  

Director of Dublin Transportation Office (DTO) John Henry commented:

“Traffic flows around schools do contribute to the wider problems of congestion throughout the Greater Dublin Area. Some car users consider that the distance to their local school or college is too far to walk and others cite road safety for children to be an issue. This is an understandable concern for many people. However, where feasible it is of more benefit for students to walk with a parent or their friends to school, to cycle if old enough with the right safety gear, or to use public transport where possible.

“We are asking people to consider their personal health and the quality of life they want to see in their local communities. If everyone left their car behind for at least one trip each week, that would be 200,000 fewer car trips every day in the Greater Dublin Area, less traffic and less pollution. Small individual changes can make a big difference.

“Children who get fresh air and exercise before school tend to arrive in better form to start their day. Under the Park & Stride scheme, many schools are already asking parents to park away from the school and to walk the last part of the journey with their children. Parents can also share lifts with other parents. Primary schools tend to be closer to home than secondary schools or colleges but we would welcome all educational establishments encouraging people to get out of their cars for at least some of the time every week.”

The DTO survey was conducted in September – November 2006 by the MVA Consultancy, and Field Research Ireland. Over 90% of all schools and colleges (844) participated in the Greater Dublin Area, yielding 147,000 individual responses or 44% of all pupils and students.

Visit www.onesmallstep.ie/media.php for the research findings.