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      Association of neighbourhood residence and preferences with the built environment, work-related travel behaviours, and health implications for employed adults: Findings from the URBAN study

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          Abstract

          Although the neighbourhoods and health field is well established, the relationships between neighbourhood selection, neighbourhood preference, work-related travel behaviours, and transport infrastructure have not been fully explored. It is likely that understanding these complex relationships more fully will inform urban policy development, and planning for neighbourhoods that support health behaviours. Accordingly, the objective of this study was to identify associations between these variables in a sample of employed adults. Self-reported demographic, work-related transport behaviours, and neighbourhood preference data were collected from 1616 employed adults recruited from 48 neighbourhoods located across four New Zealand cities. Data were collected between April 2008 and September 2010. Neighbourhood built environment measures were generated using geographical information systems. Findings demonstrated that more people preferred to live in urban (more walkable), rather than suburban (less walkable) settings. Those living in more suburban neighbourhoods had significantly longer work commute distances and lower density of public transport stops available within the neighbourhood when compared with those who lived in more urban neighbourhoods. Those preferring a suburban style neighbourhood commuted approximately 1.5 km further to work when compared with participants preferring urban settings. Respondents who preferred a suburban style neighbourhood were less likely to take public or active transport to/from work when compared with those who preferred an urban style setting, regardless of the neighbourhood type in which they resided. Although it is unlikely that constructing more walkable environments will result in work-related travel behaviour change for all, providing additional highly walkable environments will help satisfy the demand for these settings, reinforce positive health behaviours, and support those amenable to change to engage in higher levels of work-related public and active transport.

          Highlights

          ► More people preferred to live in urban (more walkable), rather than suburban (less walkable) neighbourhoods. ► Those living in less walkable neighbourhoods had longer commute distances to work. ► Living in more walkable neighbourhoods was associated with higher public transport access and lower automobile availability. ► Preferring suburban neighbourhoods was associated with lower levels of work-related public transport and active travel.

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          Most cited references42

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          An ecological approach to creating active living communities.

          The thesis of this article is that multilevel interventions based on ecological models and targeting individuals, social environments, physical environments, and policies must be implemented to achieve population change in physical activity. A model is proposed that identifies potential environmental and policy influences on four domains of active living: recreation, transport, occupation, and household. Multilevel research and interventions require multiple disciplines to combine concepts and methods to create new transdisciplinary approaches. The contributions being made by a broad range of disciplines are summarized. Research to date supports a conclusion that there are multiple levels of influence on physical activity, and the active living domains are associated with different environmental variables. Continued research is needed to provide detailed findings that can inform improved designs of communities, transportation systems, and recreation facilities. Collaborations with policy researchers may improve the likelihood of translating research findings into changes in environments, policies, and practices.
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            Stepping towards causation: do built environments or neighborhood and travel preferences explain physical activity, driving, and obesity?

            Evidence documents associations between neighborhood design and active and sedentary forms of travel. Most studies compare travel patterns for people located in different types of neighborhoods at one point in time adjusting for demographics. Most fail to account for either underlying neighborhood selection factors (reasons for choosing a neighborhood) or preferences (neighborhoods that are preferred) that impact neighborhood selection and behavior. Known as self-selection, this issue makes it difficult to evaluate causation among built form, behavior, and associated outcomes and to know how much more walking and less driving could occur through creating environments conducive to active transport. The current study controls for neighborhood selection and preference and isolates the effect of the built environment on walking, car use, and obesity. Separate analyses were conducted among 2056 persons in the Atlanta, USA based Strategies for Metropolitan Atlanta's Regional Transportation and Air Quality (SMARTRAQ) travel survey on selection factors and 1466 persons in the SMARTRAQ community preference sub-survey. A significant proportion of the population are "mismatched" and do not live in their preferred neighborhood type. Factors influencing neighborhood selection and individual preferences, and current neighborhood walkability explained vehicle travel distance after controlling for demographic variables. Individuals who preferred and lived in a walkable neighborhood walked most (33.9% walked) and drove 25.8 miles per day on average. Individuals that preferred and lived in car dependent neighborhoods drove the most (43 miles per day) and walked the least (3.3%). Individuals that do not prefer a walkable environment walked little and show no change in obesity prevalence regardless of where they live. About half as many participants were obese (11.7%) who prefer and live in walkable environments than participants who prefer car dependent environments (21.6%). Findings suggest that creating walkable environments may result in higher levels of physical activity and less driving and in slightly lower obesity prevalence for those preferring walkability.
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              Neighborhood walkability and the walking behavior of Australian adults.

              The physical attributes of residential neighborhoods, particularly the connectedness of streets and the proximity of destinations, can influence walking behaviors. To provide the evidence for public health advocacy on activity-friendly environments, large-scale studies in different countries are needed. Associations of neighborhood physical environments with adults' walking for transport and walking for recreation must be better understood. Walking for transport and walking for recreation were assessed with a validated survey among 2650 adults recruited from neighborhoods in an Australian city between July 2003 and June 2004, with neighborhoods selected to have either high or low walkability, based on objective measures of connectedness and proximity derived from geographic information systems (GIS) databases. The study design was stratified by area-level socioeconomic status, while analyses controlled for participant age, gender, individual-level socioeconomic status, and reasons for neighborhood self-selection. A strong independent positive association was found between weekly frequency of walking for transport and the objectively derived neighborhood walkability index. Preference for walkable neighborhoods moderated the relationship of walkability with weekly minutes, but not the frequency of walking for transport--walkability was related to higher frequency of transport walking, irrespective of neighborhood self-selection. There were no significant associations between environmental factors and walking for recreation. Associations of neighborhood walkability attributes with walking for transport were confirmed in Australia. They accounted for a modest but statistically significant proportion of the total variation of the relevant walking behavior. The physical environment attributes that make up the walkability index are potentially important candidate factors for future environmental and policy initiatives designed to increase physical activity.
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                Author and article information

                Journal
                Soc Sci Med
                Soc Sci Med
                Social Science & Medicine (1982)
                Pergamon
                0277-9536
                1873-5347
                1 October 2012
                October 2012
                : 75
                : 8
                : 1469-1476
                Affiliations
                [a ]University of Melbourne, Australia
                [b ]Auckland University of Technology, New Zealand
                [c ]University of Auckland, New Zealand
                [d ]Massey University, New Zealand
                [e ]Central Queensland University, Australia
                [f ]University College London, UK
                Author notes
                []Corresponding author. McCaughey Centre, University of Melbourne, Level 5, 207 Bouverie Street, Carlton, VIC 3010, Australia. Tel.: +61 3 83440943. hannah.badland@ 123456unimelb.edu.au
                Article
                S0277-9536(12)00467-4
                10.1016/j.socscimed.2012.05.029
                3778898
                22784376
                8646b61d-90d3-420e-a52c-9d802ae92cb1
                © 2012 Elsevier Ltd.

                This document may be redistributed and reused, subject to certain conditions.

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                Categories
                Short Report

                Health & Social care
                neighbourhood,transport,physical activity,employed,travel behaviour,new zealand,adults

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