Respondents overwhelmingly identified themselves as parents, and most indicated they want trick-or-treat to take place on the later side: between 6 and 8 p.m. Photo: Monstera Production, Pexels

With September coming to a close, parents and community members are preparing for a Halloween season full of creepy decorations and that sweet, sweet candy. But one of the many spooky season traditions, trick-or-treat, came into question last year when Cincinnati City Council asked parents if they wants to move the festivity to the weekend for good.

Last year, the city posted a link to a short and sweet survey on Facebook, with questions like, “What day would you prefer to have official Halloween Trick or Treat?” and, “What time of day would you prefer to have official Halloween Trick or Treat?”

The goal was to protect children’s safety and make the holiday easier on working parents. Council member Liz Keating introduced the motion, saying the change would only happen if a city-wide survey reflects the “community has a shared interest.”

The results

Related

CityBeat checked in with city officials on what came of that survey.

Of the 1,415 respondents, 750, or 53%, voted to keep trick-or-treat on Oct. 31 every year, regardless of the day of the week. While 594, about 41.9%, of respondents said they want to see trick-or-treat permanently scheduled for the closest Saturday evening. Only 71 people, about 5%, said they want to see trick-or-treat on a permanent Sunday schedule.

Respondents overwhelmingly identified themselves as parents, and most indicated they want trick-or-treat to take place on the later side: between 6 and 8 p.m.

Children’s pedestrian safety

Chief among the reasons to survey the community about trick-or-treat was pedestrian safety.

Related

The month of October has the highest rate of pedestrian injuries and fatalities among children, according to Safe Kids Worldwide, a nonprofit that works to keep kids safe from injuries. Halloween is the worst day of the year for these crashes. While pedestrian crashes among children have trended downward nationally over the past 20 years, pedestrian crashes overall have trended upward, according to data from the U.S. Department of Transportation.

Most pedestrian crashes involving children, about 69%, happened when the child was located in the roadway, not in the area of an intersection.

To maximize safety for kids during trick-or-treat, Safe Kids Worldwide suggests that trick-or-treaters and parents:

  • Cross the street at corners, using traffic signals and crosswalks.
  • Put electronic devices down, look left, right and left again when crossing.
  • Teach children to make eye contact with drivers before crossing in front of them.
  • Always walk on sidewalks or paths. If there are no sidewalks, walk facing traffic as far to the left as possible.
  • Teach children to never dart out into the street or cross between parked cars.
  • Join kids under age 12 for trick-or-treating. If kids are mature enough to be out without supervision, tell them to stick to familiar areas that are well lit and trick-or-treat in groups.

Related


Follow CityBeat’s staff news writer Madeline Fening on Twitter and Instagram.

Subscribe to CityBeat newsletters.

Follow us: Apple News | Google News | NewsBreak | Reddit | Instagram | Facebook | Twitter | Or sign up for our RSS Feed

Related Stories

This article appears in Sep 20 – Oct 3, 2023.