Children's exposure to traffic and pedestrian injuries

Abstract

Objectives. The purpose of this study was to estimate children's exposure to traffic (number of streets crossed) and to determine the role of exposure in pedestrian injury. Methods. Questionnaires were distributed to a random sample of 4080 first- and fourth-grade children in 43 Montreal schools. Results. When analyzed by police district, injury and exposure rates were positively correlated (r2 = 0.53). Crossings were similar by sex but increased with age and were inversely related to socioeconomic status. Conclusions. These results suggest that although children's exposure to traffic could be reduced by transporting them to school, a more reasonable prevention strategy involves environmental changes.