Sex Differences in Child Care Travel

Abstract

Child care travel is differentiated by sex: who makes such trips shapes the mode and distance to child care in relation to home and, for working parents, to jobs. To better understand the relationship between sex and child care travel, we analyze child care trips in California by sex while controlling for a variety of demographic and socio-economic factors. We find women are responsible for over 70% of all child care trips. Though most child care trips are taken by automobile, women are more likely to walk kids to child care centers than men. We also find that households choose child care centers that are closer to home than workplaces.