Parental perceptions of barriers and facilitators to active transportation to school for adolescents in Brunei Darussalam
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.55225/hppa.734Keywords:
adolescents, active transport, school children, Brunei DarussalamAbstract
Background: Active transportation to school (ATS) helps reduce the burden of non-communicable diseases through improvement in physical activities. This study aimed to examined parental perceptions of barriers and facilitators to ATS amongst adolescents in Brunei Darussalam, to help inform future multi-sectoral policy.
Materials and methods: A cross-sectional national online survey was conducted amongst parents of secondary school students aged 10 to 19 years, using a self-designed questionnaire adapted from established literature and was piloted. A total of 392 eligible responses were analyzed. Descriptive statistics summarized parental perceptions using Likert ratings, whilst multiple linear regression assessed associations between sociodemographic factors and parental preferences to walking, cycling and using public transport for their children.
Results: Overall, majority of parents showed low preference for their children to walk (77.1%) or to cycle (75.2%) to school, primarily due to safety issues. Strong enabling factors included improved environmental and safety infrastructures such as safety camera installations, well-enforced school zones, and separated cycling pathways. Multiple linear regression findings showed that greater home-school distance significantly reduced preference for walking (p < 0.001), and parents were less likely to encourage cycling for female children (p = 0.036).
Conclusions: Safety concerns remain the predominant barrier to ATS for adolescents, while infrastructure enhancements and strengthened safety measures pave promising pathways to increase parental support for ATS initiatives in Brunei
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