A group of Finnish researchers is studying how the availability of free public transportation might affect the activity levels of school-age children.
The study, which is being carried out in the municipalities of Mikkeli and Kouvola, will measure physical activity in two groups of 10-12 year-olds. Public transport is free for elementary students in Mikkeli, while there is a moderate fee for the service for kids in Kouvola.
Over the course of one week, around 400 kids will be outfitted with accelerometer devices attached to their legs in order to record how much they move around - as well as the time they spend sitting or being inactive.
The study is led by researchers from Xamk, South-Eastern Finland University of Applied Sciences and funded by the Ministry of Education, Science and Culture.
The university’s Arto Pesola, who according to his Linkedin page has a PhD in the physiology of sitting less, said the study is unique on a global scale.
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"Little research has been done on children [in this regard] and according to our findings, kids who use free public transport were on average as active as kids who rode bikes or walked [regularly]," Pesola said in a statement.
Research carried out in the US and the UK has found that free public transport increased the activity of the elderly and also reduced obesity risks.
But Pesola said there is no scientific data on what kinds of impacts free bus rides have on the physical activity levels of children - as well as their choice of leisure activities.
In addition to the motion data gathered by the accelerometers, the researchers also plan to interview some of the pupil’s families as well as observe their everyday lives.
Researchers from Aalto University are partners in the study, which is expected to be complete by the autumn.