The Importance of Child Care Within Walking Distance
In honor of International Walk to School Day, we're going to look at a post from Minnesota's Twin Cities about what you might call Wouldn't It Be Great If You Could Walk Your Kid to Preschool Day.
Streetsblog Network member Net Density makes the excellent point that for parents of preschool-age children, having child care within a quarter-mile of their homes can be the make-or-break factor in whether they choose an active commute (by foot, bike, or transit).
After some impressive number-crunching, the blog's author comes up with the conclusion that only between 13 and 16 percent of people in Minneapolis-St. Paul live within that distance of adequate child care options. Which makes for a planning challenge:
Most people don’t make housing decisions based on child careaccess, so depending on what you can afford, and where you want tolocate, good child care access may or may not be available in your area.
So as planners and policy makers trying to leverage the multiplebenefits of a non-auto commute (health, environmental, social), whatrole do we have in trying to improve this access? Or, in other words,how can we address this barrier and allow more people to get active? What tools can we use to do so?
Anyone out there want to step forward with some ideas? We're listening.
More from the network: Cincy Streetcar Blog has an excellent photo essay that makes a case against Issue 9, an anti-passenger rail initiative on the ballot in that city this fall. Bicycle Ambassadors demonstrates some justified pride about Philadelphia's bike commute numbers. And Portlandize takes on the question of who pays for bike infrastructure -- and auto infrastructure.
Stay in touch
Sign up for our free newsletter
More from Streetsblog New York City
Report: Road Violence Hits Record in First Quarter of 2024
Sixty people died in the first three months of the year, 50 percent more than the first quarter of 2018, which was the safest opening three months of any Vision Zero year.
Street Sweepers Could Nab Illegal Parking Under State Bill
Smile for the street-sweeper!
Thursday’s Headlines: The Way of Water Edition
The "Blue Highways" campaign wants the mayor to convert a downtown heliport into a freight delivery hub. Plus more news.
Gotcha-Heimer! Anti-Congestion Pricing Jersey Rep. With a City Speeding Ticket Drove to Manhattan on Wednesday
New Jersey's most vociferous opponent of congestion pricing parked illegally and once got a speeding ticket.
