IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/gam/jsusta/v16y2023i1p48-d1303721.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Understanding Active Transportation to School Behavior in Socioeconomically Disadvantaged Communities: A Machine Learning and SHAP Analysis Approach

Author

Listed:
  • Bita Etaati

    (Big Data Analytics (BDA) Program, San Diego State University, San Diego, CA 92182, USA)

  • Arash Jahangiri

    (Department of Civil, Construction, and Environmental Engineering, San Diego State University, San Diego, CA 92182, USA)

  • Gabriela Fernandez

    (Department of Geography, San Diego State University, San Diego, CA 92182, USA)

  • Ming-Hsiang Tsou

    (Department of Geography, San Diego State University, San Diego, CA 92182, USA)

  • Sahar Ghanipoor Machiani

    (Department of Civil, Construction, and Environmental Engineering, San Diego State University, San Diego, CA 92182, USA)

Abstract

Active Transportation to School (ATS) offers numerous health benefits and is considered an affordable option, especially in disadvantaged neighborhoods. The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) advises 60 min of daily physical exercise for children aged 6 to 17, making ATS a compelling approach to promote a healthier lifestyle among students. Initiated in 2005 by the US Department of Transportation (DOT), the Safe Routes to School (SRTS) program aims to foster safe and regular walking and biking to school for students. This paper examines students’ travel behavior using SRTS survey data and assesses the program’s effectiveness in promoting ATS in Chula Vista, California. Employing machine learning algorithms (random forest, logistic regression, and support vector machines) to predict students’ likelihood to walk to school, it utilizes SHAP (SHapley Additive exPlanations) to pinpoint significant variables influencing ATS across all models. SHAP underscores critical factors affecting transportation choices to school, highlighting the importance of home-to-school distance, with shorter distances positively impacting active transportation. However, only half of students within schools’ walking distance opted to walk to school, underscoring the necessity of addressing parental safety concerns, including factors such as crime rates and traffic speed along the route.

Suggested Citation

  • Bita Etaati & Arash Jahangiri & Gabriela Fernandez & Ming-Hsiang Tsou & Sahar Ghanipoor Machiani, 2023. "Understanding Active Transportation to School Behavior in Socioeconomically Disadvantaged Communities: A Machine Learning and SHAP Analysis Approach," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 16(1), pages 1-18, December.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:16:y:2023:i:1:p:48-:d:1303721
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/16/1/48/pdf
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/16/1/48/
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Miaomiao Yan & Yindong Shen, 2022. "Traffic Accident Severity Prediction Based on Random Forest," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(3), pages 1-13, February.
    2. Li, Man & Wang, Yupeng & Zhou, Dian, 2023. "Effects of the built environment and sociodemographic characteristics on Children's school travel," Transport Policy, Elsevier, vol. 134(C), pages 191-202.
    3. Jonny Evans & Ben Waterson & Andrew Hamilton, 2019. "Forecasting road traffic conditions using a context-based random forest algorithm," Transportation Planning and Technology, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 42(6), pages 554-572, August.
    4. Mohammad Lutfur Rahman & Antoni Moore & Melody Smith & John Lieswyn & Sandra Mandic, 2020. "A Conceptual Framework for Modelling Safe Walking and Cycling Routes to High Schools," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 17(9), pages 1-16, May.
    5. Ragland, David R & Pande, Swati & Bigham, John & Cooper, Jill F, 2014. "Ten Years Later: Examining the Long-Term Impact of the California Safe Routes to School Program," Institute of Transportation Studies, Research Reports, Working Papers, Proceedings qt8m59g6vx, Institute of Transportation Studies, UC Berkeley.
    6. Chaufan, C. & Yeh, J. & Fox, P., 2012. "The Safe Routes to School program in California: An update," American Journal of Public Health, American Public Health Association, vol. 102(6), pages 8-11.
    7. Orenstein, Marla R. & Gutierrez, Nicolas & Rice, Thomas M. & Cooper, Jill F. & Ragland, David R., 2007. "Safe Routes to School Safety and Mobility Analysis," Institute of Transportation Studies, Research Reports, Working Papers, Proceedings qt5455454c, Institute of Transportation Studies, UC Berkeley.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Hazel Williams-Roberts & Bonnie Jeffery & Shanthi Johnson & Nazeem Muhajarine, 2015. "The Effectiveness of Healthy Community Approaches on Positive Health Outcomes in Canada and the United States," Social Sciences, MDPI, vol. 5(1), pages 1-21, December.
    2. Chia-Yuan Yu, 2015. "How Differences in Roadways Affect School Travel Safety," Journal of the American Planning Association, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 81(3), pages 203-220, July.
    3. Pucher, John & Buehler, Ralph & Seinen, Mark, 2011. "Bicycling renaissance in North America? An update and re-appraisal of cycling trends and policies," Transportation Research Part A: Policy and Practice, Elsevier, vol. 45(6), pages 451-475, July.
    4. Mohammad Lutfur Rahman & Tessa Pocock & Antoni Moore & Sandra Mandic, 2020. "Active Transport to School and School Neighbourhood Built Environment across Urbanisation Settings in Otago, New Zealand," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 17(23), pages 1-15, December.
    5. Fernando Rodríguez-Rodríguez & Francisco Javier Huertas-Delgado & Yaira Barranco-Ruiz & María Jesús Aranda-Balboa & Palma Chillón, 2020. "Are the Parents’ and Their Children’s Physical Activity and Mode of Commuting Associated? Analysis by Gender and Age Group," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 17(18), pages 1-16, September.
    6. Liu, Yang & Min, Shisheng & Shi, Zhuangbin & He, Mingwei, 2024. "Exploring students' choice of active travel to school in different spatial environments: A case study in a mountain city," Journal of Transport Geography, Elsevier, vol. 115(C).
    7. Sinanaj, Luan & Bedalli, Erind & Abazi Bexheti, Lejla, 2023. "A Classification Model for Predicting Road Accidents Using Web Data," Proceedings of the ENTRENOVA - ENTerprise REsearch InNOVAtion Conference (2023), Hybrid Conference, Dubrovnik, Croatia, in: Proceedings of the ENTRENOVA - ENTerprise REsearch InNOVAtion Conference, Hybrid Conference, Dubrovnik, Croatia, 4-6 September, 2023, pages 60-71, IRENET - Society for Advancing Innovation and Research in Economy, Zagreb.
    8. Sandra Mandic & Erika Ikeda & Tom Stewart & Nicholas Garrett & Debbie Hopkins & Jennifer S. Mindell & El Shadan Tautolo & Melody Smith, 2020. "Sociodemographic and Built Environment Associates of Travel to School by Car among New Zealand Adolescents: Meta-Analysis," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 17(23), pages 1-17, December.
    9. Mohammad Lutfur Rahman & Antoni Moore & Melody Smith & John Lieswyn & Sandra Mandic, 2020. "A Conceptual Framework for Modelling Safe Walking and Cycling Routes to High Schools," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 17(9), pages 1-16, May.
    10. Maria Cieśla & Elżbieta Macioszek, 2022. "The Perspective Projects Promoting Sustainable Mobility by Active Travel to School on the Example of the Southern Poland Region," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(16), pages 1-18, August.
    11. Mireille Megnidio-Tchoukouegno & Jacob Adedayo Adedeji, 2023. "Machine Learning for Road Traffic Accident Improvement and Environmental Resource Management in the Transportation Sector," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(3), pages 1-19, January.
    12. Noreen C. McDonald & Ruth L. Steiner & Chanam Lee & Tori Rhoulac Smith & Xuemei Zhu & Yizhao Yang, 2014. "Impact of the Safe Routes to School Program on Walking and Bicycling," Journal of the American Planning Association, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 80(2), pages 153-167, April.
    13. Brachman, Micah L. & Church, Richard L., 2019. "Optimizing Safe Routes to School," Socio-Economic Planning Sciences, Elsevier, vol. 67(C), pages 26-33.
    14. Palma Chillón & Patricia Gálvez-Fernández & Francisco Javier Huertas-Delgado & Manuel Herrador-Colmenero & Yaira Barranco-Ruiz & Emilio Villa-González & María Jesús Aranda-Balboa & Romina Gisele Sauce, 2021. "A School-Based Randomized Controlled Trial to Promote Cycling to School in Adolescents: The PACO Study," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(4), pages 1-20, February.
    15. Noreen McDonald & Ruth Steiner & W. Palmer & Allison Bullock & Virginia Sisiopiku & Benjamin Lytle, 2016. "Costs of school transportation: quantifying the fiscal impacts of encouraging walking and bicycling for school travel," Transportation, Springer, vol. 43(1), pages 159-175, January.
    16. Amanda Fernandes & Mònica Ubalde-López & Tiffany C. Yang & Rosemary R. C. McEachan & Rukhsana Rashid & Léa Maitre & Mark J. Nieuwenhuijsen & Martine Vrijheid, 2023. "School-Based Interventions to Support Healthy Indoor and Outdoor Environments for Children: A Systematic Review," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 20(3), pages 1-24, January.
    17. Yali Zhang & Luchao Bai & Yuan Qi & Huasheng Huang & Xiaoyang Lu & Junqi Xiao & Yubin Lan & Muhua Lin & Jizhong Deng, 2022. "Detection of Rice Spikelet Flowering for Hybrid Rice Seed Production Using Hyperspectral Technique and Machine Learning," Agriculture, MDPI, vol. 12(6), pages 1-17, May.
    18. Chen, Peng & Jiao, Junfeng & Xu, Mengyuan & Gao, Xu & Bischak, Chris, 2018. "Promoting active student travel: A longitudinal study," Journal of Transport Geography, Elsevier, vol. 70(C), pages 265-274.
    19. Noreen C. McDonald & Ruth L. Steiner & W. Mathew Palmer & Allison N. Bullock & Virginia P. Sisiopiku & Benjamin F. Lytle, 2016. "Costs of school transportation: quantifying the fiscal impacts of encouraging walking and bicycling for school travel," Transportation, Springer, vol. 43(1), pages 159-175, January.
    20. Thomas V. Vasey & Suzanne J. Carroll & Mark Daniel & Margaret Cargo, 2022. "Changing Primary School Children’s Engagement in Active School Travel Using Safe Routes to School Interventions: A Rapid Realist Review," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(16), pages 1-29, August.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:16:y:2023:i:1:p:48-:d:1303721. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: MDPI Indexing Manager (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://www.mdpi.com .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.