Kids on bikes once filled the streets. Not anymore. ... Tellingly, the share of K–8 students walking or biking to school fell from 48 percent in 1969 to just 13 percent in 2009, ...

Parents may like the idea of their children biking to school, in theory. But with streets—and drivers—that often seem hostile to cyclists, the idea of sending kids off on their own can be terrifying.

ARI SHAPIRO, HOST: Since the pandemic, schools across the country have been struggling with kids missing school. And if a student is gone at least 10% of the year, it's considered chronic absenteeism.