Parents are losing an alarming number of minutes every year shuttling their kids to various activities so they can stay active, a new survey has revealed.
Soccer, baseball, music, dance, school, chess and visits to friends’ houses are all part of most families’ routines. But now a new survey by Talker Research has added up all those minutes driving the little ones to those events.
Over the course of an average 180-day school year, parents lose nearly 7,000 minutes, or 116 hours - the equivalent of nearly 15 eight-hour workdays - behind the wheel.
“When you look at the numbers, parents are spending the equivalent of nearly three full workweeks each school year just driving to and from activities,” said Jason Roche, vice president, Bob Evans Farms portfolio, which commissioned the survey.
Conducted by Talker Research, the survey interviewed 2,000 millennial parents of school-aged kids. The survey also explored other major challenges that parents face as they start to prepare for back-to-school season.
More than 77 percent admitted that the back-to-school season makes everyday life feel more hectic.
More than half, roughly 55 percent, are concerned about the rising prices of school supplies and materials, while 71 percent said that the money they have to spend when their child returns to school has jumped compared to last year.
A recent report from the National Retail Foundation found that spending for back-to-school is set to hit an all-time high of $146.8 billion in 2026. That includes funding on clothing, electronics and goods needed for college students.
Roughly 62 percent of shoppers have already started looking for school supplies as they search for deals with budgets stretched thin by inflation, according to a survey by the foundation.
“Affordability is a concern for families and a top priority for retailers as we enter the back-to-school season,” Executive Director of Research Mark Mathews said. “Shoppers are keeping value front and center as they look for ways to make their dollars go further.”
Adjusting to new school-year routines is a challenge for 42 percent of parents interviewed by Talker Research.
The research also found that half of parents sacrifice their personal time and hobbies for the benefit of their children, while 40 percent end up losing sleep.
A separate survey by the US Bureau of Labor Statistics revealed that on average, parents spend just over two hours every day caring for and helping their children, if they are under the age of six.
The physical care takes the longest - just under one hour - and the rest is split between playing with them, helping them with school and reading to them.
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