Release Date: Feb. 28, 2005
URBAN GREEN SPACE
LINKED TO WALKING, CYCLING LEVELS
By Ira R. Allen, Executive Editor
Health Behavior News Service
The degree to which city people walk or ride bicycles for their daily transportation
needs depends largely on how much green space there is, says a new study that
examines the role of urban design in physical fitness.
“Because engaging in moderate physical activity such as walking or bicycling
can improve health outcomes, understanding strategies that increase these behaviors
has become a public health priority,” says Amy Zlot, an epidemiologist
with the Oregon Department of Human Services, writing in the current American
Journal of Health Promotion.
Using government databases with results from surveys of more than half a million
respondents, the researchers compared levels of fitness with parkland acreage
in 34 metropolitan areas.
They found that San Francisco had the highest percentage of people who walked
or bicycled for recreation and the highest percentage of parkland. New York
City had the highest percentage that walked or bicycled for basic transportation,
such as commuting to work or running errands, and the third highest amount
of parkland.
Atlanta had the lowest percentage for recreational walking or bicycling and
the second lowest percentage of parkland, and Memphis had the lowest proportion
of people who walked or rode for transportation purposes and the sixth lowest
percentage of open space. San Jose had the lowest percentage of parkland.
The parkland acreage was measured as a percentage of total city size, and
the figures for walking or bicycling were derived from those who listed those
as their two most frequent forms of physical activity.
“In this set of observations, walking and bicycling for transportation
was positively associated with parkland acreage,” say Zlot and co-author
Tom Schmid, who did the research while employed at the Centers for Disease
Control and Prevention. The data did not show a significant relationship between
the level of walking or cycling for pleasure and the percentage of urban parks.
The significance of the study, say
the authors, is that “the number
of route choices a community provides – and mix – the relative
percentage of housing, retail, work and recreational opportunities in a community – appear
to be important, independent predictors of walking and bicycling.”
Zlot and Schmid suggest that studies
like theirs might help in the planning of “livable communities” by
multidisciplinary teams of urban planners, architects, transportation experts,
developers, policy makers, park administrators
and environmentalists.
A study of Atlanta area residents published in early February found that city
dwellers were more physically active than suburbanites because they walk more
often for shopping, dining or doing errands.
Government data suggest that only 45 percent of Americans meet recommendations
for physical activity and of the remaining 55 percent, about half are sedentary.
The top 10 cities for recreational walking and bicycling: San Francisco, Milwaukee,
Oakland, San Diego, San Jose, Pittsburgh, Sacramento, Los Angeles/Tampa (tied)
and Denver.
The bottom 10 cities for recreational walking and bicycling: Atlanta, Cincinnati,
New York, Chicago, Houston, Phoenix-Mesa, Cleveland, Miami, Las Vegas and Virginia
Beach.
The top 10 cities for “utilitarian” walking
and bicycling: New York, Philadelphia, Baltimore, Minneapolis-St. Paul, Boston,
San Francisco,
Chicago, Portland, Cincinnati and Oakland.
The bottom 10 cities for “utilitarian” walking
and bicycling: Memphis, Columbus, Cleveland, Virginia Beach, Milwaukee, St.
Louis/Atlanta
(tied), San Jose, San Diego and Sacramento.
The top 10 cities for parkland as a percentage of city acreage: San Francisco,
Washington, New York, San Diego, Boston, Minneapolis-St. Paul, Portland, Cincinnati,
Philadelphia and Phoenix-Mesa.
The bottom 10 cities for parkland as a percentage of city acreage: San Jose,
Atlanta, New Orleans, Tampa, Miami, Houston, Cleveland, Memphis/Sacramento
(tie) and Columbus
FOR
MORE INFORMATION:
Health Behavior News Service: (202) 387-2829
or www.hbns.org.
Center for
the Advancement of Health
Contact: Ira R. Allen
Vice President of Public Affairs
202.387.2829
press@cfah.org
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