Safety means almost twice as many boys cycle as girls, groundbreaking report finds

A gender gap exists in children's cycling habits according to the first ever Children's Index report by UK walking and cycling charity Sustrans.

Released today the report, sponsored by Halfords, finds that almost twice as many boys than girls cycle five or more times per week – 28% versus 17%. Accordingly, just eight per cent of girls see themselves as someone who cycle often, as opposed to 17% of boys.

There was also a gender difference when it came to attitudes to cycling in their local area, with 70% of boys saying that safety was good versus 65% of girls. And on a similar front, 72% of boys rating it as a good place to ride, versus 66% of girls.

“The source [of the gender gap] could be the combination of a variety of things and deserves a lot of consideration," the report's co-author and Sustrans head of policy Tim Burns told Cycling Weekly. "However, the most important thing we do know is that safety is a major concern for girls and boys cycling. So this must be addressed first otherwise we can’t really hope for progress for either boys or girls – of whom the majority, we know, want to cycle. Sadly, until we can reach that point, girls are going to continue to be at a disadvantage.”

In total, the report found that less than half of children (48%) cycled at least once a week, but more encouragingly, over half (51%) said they would like to cycle more. Safety is clearly a concern though, with 81% saying they would like more cycle paths and quiet routes, and 78% supporting more cycle paths alongside roads but separated from cars.

The report also looked at children's 'walking and wheeling' (wheeling being using wheelchairs and similar) and scooting habits. Combined with cycling, it showed an encouraging level of active travel use, with these activities making up more than half of weekly journeys (55%) versus being driven by car or van making up 33%.

"Sustrans have run like little polls and bits and pieces around children," Burns said, "but this is the first time we've really brought it together. Children, of course, are far less likely to respond to consultations, they can't vote, their voices can be admitted from the debate. So this is the first attempt from Sustrans at really lifting the lid on what children need, and how does that vary, up and down the country."

The information gleaned from the report will be taken to its Children's Index Summit in May, which will host thinkers from local and national government as well as the active travel sector, with a view to planning next steps.

"It's about bringing that sector together to really start to think about practical commitments," Burns said, "recommendations for others that we can jointly make towards solving some of these issues for children. So that will tackle things like the gender gap in cycling, but also a variety of other different themes… and the hope is that we can then publish a collective set of recommendations for government and for the wider sector to build upon."