Kids also have it rough. They are getting fatter and childhood obesity has very real dangers. Meanwhile, most people (parents included) would agree that there are many good reasons to promote exercise. More and more studies are showing that exercise, in addition to promoting weight loss, reduces depression and anxiety. However, in a typical American approach, we seek to “buy” a solution. Schools look to add physical activities to daily curriculums by spending more money on exercise gizmos and adding PE courses, but those same “go-to-the-gym” parents complain about increases in taxes to pay for these initiatives. Given this, I suggest a cheap and simple method to programming exercise into many kids’ lives: Have kids walk to school.

My informal survey of Suffolk County School districts indicated a wide range of different transportation policies. Some districts, e.g., Three Village and Port Jefferson, bus K-6th grade youngsters to school no matter how close they live. Therefore, even a 3rd grader in these districts who lives two blocks from the school gets bussed. Other districts require walking. East Hampton’s transportation policy was that kids living less than a mile and a half from school don’t get bus transportation. My informal discussion with the transportation officials suggested that those districts which didn’t bus all students, including East Hampton, were reviewing the policies to bus from closer ranges because parents were afraid of the potential dangers of walking. No one that I spoke with was considering increasing the distance required to bus. The general consensus was that it was safer to bus, for fears of auto accidents and molesters.

There is indeed a danger of auto accidents, and there is a remote possibility of child molestation. Yet, there are risks both ways. If kids don’t get exercise, the increase in weight can lead to a number of health risks. Parents, school administrators and school boards bear short-term risks associated with the potential incidents children may face by walking to school.

But measures can be taken to avoid them and still address the longer-term health risks. I walked eight Bronx blocks to school each way from kindergarten to High School graduation. We usually walked with an older kid in the early grades, and then with peers as we got older. I never saw nor heard of either an auto accident or of adult molesters. At the risk of being called an old fuddy-duddy who exalts, “the good ol’ days,” I maintain that the probability that lack of exercise will lead to health problems seems more certain than the risks of auto accidents.

Parents should review their district’s records to see if there have been accidents or other incidents. Certainly if there is a history of danger, bussing makes sense. Otherwise, send them walking.