Age and Retirement Status Differences in Associations between the Built Environment and Active Travel Behaviour

Transport walking and transit use provide opportunities to achieve health-enhancing activity levels within daily routines. Transit access and neighborhood walkability may influence how readily adults engage in active travel and, ultimately, whether they will. Thus, the authors aimed to examine associations between Walk Score® and Transit Score® and transit use and transport walking, and to determine whether associations differed across age groups and retirement status. The authors linked data for Canadian Community Health Survey Healthy Aging Cycle (2008/2009) respondents (aged =45 years) from British Columbia (N=3860) to objectively-measured walkability and transit access. The authors used logistic regression to examine associations between built environment measures and transport walking and using transit in the past month. The authors tested whether age group and retirement status were significant moderators of the relation between the built environment and active travel. A 10-point higher Walk Score was associated with 34% higher odds of walking for transport (OR=1.34; 95%CI: 1.23, 1.47) and 28% higher odds of using transit (OR=1.28; 95%CI: 1.17,1.40). A 10-point higher Transit Score was associated with 37% higher odds of walking for transport (OR=1.37; 95%CI: 1.18,1.60) and 40% higher odds of transit use (OR=1.40; 95%CI: 1.22,1.59). Furthermore, those in neighborhoods with Excellent Transit/Rider’s Paradise had over three-and-a-half times higher odds of walking for transport and three times higher odds of using transit than those in neighborhoods with Minimal Transit/Some Transit (p<0.005). Stronger associations were observed between Transit Score and active transport among older age groups and between Walk Score and transport walking among those not retired. Transit accessibility and walkability can support active travel behavior in middle-aged and older adults. Transit access may be especially important in older age groups and walkability may be especially important for middle-aged and older adults who are still working.

• Record URL:
  • https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jth.2016.03.003
• Record URL:
  • http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2214140516000256
• Availability:
  • Find a library where document is available. Order URL: http://worldcat.org/issn/22141405
• Supplemental Notes:
  • Abstract reprinted with permission of Elsevier.
• Authors:
  • Barnes, Rosanne
  • Winters, Meghan
  • Ste-Marie, Nathalie
  • McKay, Heather
  • Ashe, Maureen C
• Publication Date: 2016-12

Language

• English

Media Info

• Media Type: Web
• Features: References;
• Pagination: pp 513-522
• Serial:
  • Journal of Transport & Health
  • Volume: 3
  • Issue Number: 4
  • Publisher: Elsevier
  • ISSN: 2214-1405
  • Serial URL: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/journal/22141405

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Age groups; Built environment; Commuting; Public transit; Travel behavior; Walkability; Walking
• Geographic Terms: British Columbia, Canada
• Subject Areas: Pedestrians and Bicyclists; Public Transportation; Safety and Human Factors;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 01619981
• Record Type: Publication
• Files: TRIS
• Created Date: Dec 28 2016 8:50AM