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Reproduced from Environmental Health Perspectives. This article is published under https://ehp.niehs.nih.gov/journal-information/ (the “License”). Notwithstanding the ProQuest Terms and conditions, you may use this content in accordance with the terms of the License.

Abstract

Background:

Societies face the challenge of keeping people active as they age. Walkable neighborhoods have been associated with physical activity, but more rigorous analytical approaches are needed.

Objectives:

We used longitudinal data from adult residents of Brisbane, Australia (40–65 years of age at baseline) to estimate effects of changes in neighborhood characteristics over a 6-y period on the likelihood of walking for transport.

Methods:

Analyses included 2,789–9,747 How Areas Influence Health and Activity (HABITAT) cohort participants from 200 neighborhoods at baseline (2007) who completed up to three follow-up questionnaires (through 2013). Principal components analysis was used to derive a proxy measure of walkability preference. Environmental predictors were changes in street connectivity, residential density, and land use mix within a one-kilometer network buffer. Associations with any walking and minutes of walking were estimated using logistic and linear regression, including random effects models adjusted for time-varying confounders and a measure of walkability preference, and fixed effects models of changes in individuals to eliminate confounding by time-invariant characteristics.

Results:

Any walking for transport (vs. none) was increased in association with an increase in street connectivity (+10 intersections, fixed effects OR=1.19; 95% confidence interval (CI): 1.07, 1.32), residential density (+5 dwellings/hectare, OR=1.10; 95% CI: 1.05, 1.15), and land-use mix (10% increase, OR=1.12; 95% CI: 1.00, 1.26). Associations with minutes of walking were positive based on random effects models, but null for fixed effects models. The association between land-use mix and any walking appeared to be limited to participants in the highest tertile of increased street connectivity (fixed effects OR=1.17; 95% CI: 0.99, 1.35 for a 1-unit increase in land-use mix; interaction p-value=0.05).

Conclusions:

Increases in street connectivity, residential density, and land-use heterogeneity were associated with walking for transport among middle-age residents of Brisbane, Australia.

Details

Title
A Longitudinal Study Examining Changes in Street Connectivity, Land Use, and Density of Dwellings and Walking for Transport in Brisbane, Australia
Author
Bentley, Rebecca; Blakely, Tony; Kavanagh, Anne; Aitken, Zoe; King, Tania; McElwee, Paul; Giles-Corti, Billie; Turrell, Gavin
Section
Research
Publication year
2018
Publication date
May 2018
Publisher
National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences
e-ISSN
15529924
Source type
Scholarly Journal
Language of publication
English
ProQuest document ID
2079943768
Copyright
Reproduced from Environmental Health Perspectives. This article is published under https://ehp.niehs.nih.gov/journal-information/ (the “License”). Notwithstanding the ProQuest Terms and conditions, you may use this content in accordance with the terms of the License.