Dataset Information

Assessing the Policy Environment for Active Mobility in Cities-Development and Feasibility of the PASTA Cycling and Walking Policy Environment Score.

ABSTRACT: The importance of setting a policy focus on promoting cycling and walking as sustainable and healthy modes of transport is increasingly recognized. However, to date a science-driven scoring system to assess the policy environment for cycling and walking is lacking. In this study, spreadsheet-based scoring systems for cycling and walking were developed, including six dimensions (cycling/walking culture, social acceptance, perception of traffic safety, advocacy, politics and urban planning). Feasibility was tested using qualitative data from pre-specified sections of semi-standardized interview and workshop reports from a European research project in seven cities, assessed independently by two experts. Disagreements were resolved by discussions of no more than 75 minutes per city. On the dimension "perception of traffic safety", quantitative panel data were used. While the interrater agreement was fair, feasibility was confirmed in general. Validity testing against social norms towards active travel, modal split and network length was encouraging for the policy area of cycling. Rating the policy friendliness for cycling and walking separately was found to be appropriate, as different cities received the highest scores for each. Replicating this approach in a more standardized way would pave the way towards a transparent, evidence-based system for benchmarking policy approaches of cities towards cycling and walking.

SUBMITTER: Kahlmeier S

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7908172 | biostudies-literature | 2021 Jan

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

ACCESS DATA

Publications

Assessing the Policy Environment for Active Mobility in Cities-Development and Feasibility of the PASTA Cycling and Walking Policy Environment Score.

Kahlmeier Sonja S Boig Esther Anaya EA Fernandez A Castro C Smeds Emilia E Benvenuti Fabrizio F Eriksson Ulf U Iacorossi Francesco F Nieuwenhuijsen Mark J MJ Int Panis Luc L Rojas-Rueda David D Wegener Sandra S de Nazelle Audrey A

International journal of environmental research and public health 20210122 3

The importance of setting a policy focus on promoting cycling and walking as sustainable and healthy modes of transport is increasingly recognized. However, to date a science-driven scoring system to assess the policy environment for cycling and walking is lacking. In this study, spreadsheet-based scoring systems for cycling and walking were developed, including six dimensions (cycling/walking culture, social acceptance, perception of traffic safety, advocacy, politics and urban planning). Feasi ...[more]

PMID: 33499420

Similar Datasets

Project description:BackgroundAlthough walking for travel can help in reaching the daily recommended levels of physical activity, we know relatively little about the correlates of walking for travel in the European context.ObjectiveWithin the framework of the European Physical Activity through Sustainable Transport Approaches (PASTA) project, we aimed to explore the correlates of walking for travel in European cities.MethodsThe same protocol was applied in seven European cities. Using a web-based questionnaire, we collected information on total minutes of walking per week, individual characteristics, mobility behavior, and attitude (N=7,875). Characteristics of the built environment (the home and the work/study addresses) were determined with geographic information system (GIS)-based techniques. We conducted negative binomial regression analyses, including city as a random effect. Factor and principal component analyses were also conducted to define profiles of the different variables of interest.ResultsLiving in high-density residential areas with richness of facilities and density of public transport stations was associated with increased walking for travel, whereas the same characteristics at the work/study area were less strongly associated with the outcome when the residential and work/study environments were entered in the model jointly. A walk-friendly social environment was associated with walking for travel. All three factors describing different opinions about walking (ranging from good to bad) were associated with increased minutes of walking per week, although the importance given to certain criteria to choose a mode of transport provided different results according to the criteria.DiscussionThe present study supports findings from previous research regarding the role of the built environment in the promotion of walking for travel and provides new findings to help in achieving sustainable, healthy, livable, and walkable cities. https://doi.org/10.1289/EHP4603.

Dataset Information

Assessing the Policy Environment for Active Mobility in Cities-Development and Feasibility of the PASTA Cycling and Walking Policy Environment Score.

Publications

Assessing the Policy Environment for Active Mobility in Cities-Development and Feasibility of the PASTA Cycling and Walking Policy Environment Score.

Similar Datasets

OmicsDI is part of the ELIXIR infrastructure

Tweets