AUSTRALIAN children are now among the most ''cosseted'' and ''chauffeured'' in the world, with a study showing more than 60 per cent are driven to and from school as the numbers who walk, cycle and take public transport fall to new lows.

A Heart Foundation survey of how today's young Australians get to and from primary and high school shows a complete reversal in transport use has taken place in the past 40 years.

The number of children who walk, cycle or take public transport to school has fallen to new lows. Credit:Angela Wylie

A 1970 study by the Australian Bureau of Statistics showed that 84 per cent of all students in primary school, high school, university and TAFE travelled by public transport, walking and cycling, with just 16 per cent using cars. The new study shows that 63 per cent are driven to and from school while active transport use has plummeted.

Precise comparisons of student travel have become impossible since the ABS stopped its regular surveys, but the Heart Foundation study provides dramatic evidence it says helps explain why Australia has become one of the world's most obese nations.