Active Transportation Choices and Health in Toronto

Road to Health: Improving Walking and Cycling in Toronto (109 page pdf, Toronto Public Health, April 2012) Today, we look at a report on Toronto that examines how walking and cycling as active transportation modes benefit health and how much more improvement could be achieved if both forms were optimized. Estimated benefits are over 129 [...]

What Makes a Walkable City?- a look at Canada’s largest city

The Walkable City: Neighbourhood Design and Preferences, Travel Choices and Health (58 page pdf, Toronto Public Health, April 2012) Today we look at Toronto and the Greater Toronto Area (GTA) which has many of the challenges faced by other large American and Canadian cities which have evolved to a car-oriented end state that discourage walking [...]

Sustainable Transportation and Mobility for Seniors

Great Ideas for Senior-Friendly Communities (US News, Jan. 12, 2012) Also discussed here: Age friendliness — sounds good, where is it? (Laurie Orlov , Aging in Place Technology, Jan. 14, 2012) And here: Aging in Place:A State Survey of Livability Policies and Practices (84 page pdf, Nicholas Farber, JD, and Douglas Shinkle,  National Conference of [...]

Really Narrow Streets and Sustainable Cities

Thinking Small: The Narrow Streets “Movement” (Old Urbanist, Mar. 29,2011) Also discussed here: In praise of Really Narrow Streets (StreetsBlog, Jan. 4, 2012) And here: Recipe for Florence (New World Economics, Jun. 17, 2007) And here: (Narrow Streets Los Angeles, Dec. 3, 2011) Today we look at  some articles about cities with really narrow streets, [...]

Jane Jacobs and the Sustainable City

Defining principles: Remembering Mrs. Jacobs, The Power of Jane Jacobs’ “Web Way of Thinking” (Michael Mehaffy, World Streets, Dec.23. 2011) Also discussed here: Jane Jacobs Although born as an American and having made significant contributions to the New York City landscape, Jane Jacobs is often fondly viewed by Canadians as one of their own and one [...]

Neighbourhood-Scale Air Pollution Exposure, Walkability and Heart Disease

Health Impacts of the Built Environment: Within-urban Variability in Physical Inactivity, Air Pollution, and Ischemic Heart Disease Mortality (34 page pdf, Steve Hankey, Julian D. Marshall, Michael Brauer, Environ Health Perspect, Oct. 17, 2011) Today we review some research into the link between physical inactivity, air pollution and health impact at the inter-urban scale. The [...]

Why do People Drive to Work?

How and why do people commute by car? A mixed-methods investigation ( Abstract, A Goodman, J Panter, C Guell, D Ogilvie, J Epidemiol Community Health, Sep. 14, 2011) Today’s review is interesting because it looks at why people chose to drive a car to work. The results indicate that the decision is strongly influenced by [...]

The Pain of Commuting

IBM 2011 Global Commuter Pain Survey (9 page pdf, IBM, Sep. 8, 2011) In many cities, vehicle emissions is a major contributer to urban air pollution and the choices commuters make in their choice of transportation mode has a major impact on the resulting air quality. Today we review the 4th annual world survey of [...]

On-Street Parking

The importance of on-street parking (Steve Mouzon, New Urban Network, Aug. 10, 2011 Today’s focus is on the need for on-street parking and why the alternatives are unsafe, bad for business and generally bad for the urban environment. To see Key Quotes and Links to key reports about this post, click HERE

Why Pedestrians are a Priority in Europe – and not so much in North America

Europe Stifles Drivers in Favor of Alternatives(Elisabeth Rosenthal, New York Times, Jun. 27, 2011) The focus of today’s review is a discussion about changes taking place in many European cities that put the convenience of pedestrians higher than that of drivers. The result is that much fewer households see a need for – or even [...]

Urban Form and Greenhouse Gas Reductions

An Assessment of Urban Form and Pedestrian and Transit Improvements as an Integrated GHG Reduction Strategy (117 page pdf, Dr. Lawrence D. Frank, Michael J. Greenwald, Sarah Kavage, Andrew Devlin, Washington State Department of Transportation, Apr. 1, 2011) Today’s article under review looks at transportation demand management in and around Seattle, Washington as a way [...]

The Impact of Pedestrian Zones on Urban Air Quality

Mayor Bloomberg Announces Latest Results of Health Department Air Quality Study that shows Air in Times Square is Cleaner and Healthier since Pedestrian Plazas were Opened (New York City, PR- 120-11, Apr. 13, 2011)   Today’s news article speaks to the impact that pedestrian or car-free zones actually have on the air quality in and [...]

Driving and Walking in the City

No Accident: Traffic and Pedestrians in the Modern City ( John Rennie Short; Luis Mauricio Pinet-Peralta, Pages 41 – 59, Mobilities, Feb.1, 2010)   Today’s article comes thanks to the World Streets blog which reprinted much of an article from the journal Mobilites by Short and Pinet-Peralta. It looks at the enormous cost of a [...]

Road Diet- putting a curb on roads

Image via Wikipedia Road Diets Fixing the Big Roads (15 page pdf, Walkable Communities, Inc. March 1999) Also discussed here: Applying the Road Diet for Livable Communities (20 slides, ITE, 2005) And here Summary Report: Evaluation of Lane Reduction “Road Diet” Measures and Their Effects on Crashes and Injuries(6 page pdf, Highway Safety Information System, [...]

Sharing Transportation and Mobility

Image via Wikipedia Sharing: Strategy for a Small Planet (World Streets, Sept. 27, 2010) Also discussed here: World Share/Transport Forum: Kaohsiung 2010 – The Third Way of Getting Around in Cities (Kaohsiung. 16 – 19 September 2010) The article in focus today is the introductory speech by well known mobility expert and commentator, Eric Britton, [...]

Designing a High Quality Street

Paved with gold – The real value of good street design (35 page pdf, CABE, Commission for Architecture and the Built Environment, 2007) The report being reviewed today examined the key factors that make for high quality streets which in turn make for sustainable urban areas that promote walking and cycling, as well as 5% [...]

Walking Safely on City Streets

Pedestrian Safety Study and Action Plan (50 page pdf, New York City Dept. of Transportation, Aug. 2010) Also discussed here:  Arriving at Better Road Safety Measures (The City Fix, Sep. 1, 2010) And here: A Decade Of Action For Road Safety – A Brief Planning Document (World Health Organization, 2010) Today’s review report comes from [...]

Designing Streets for People not just for Cars

Journal of World Transport Policy and Practice(72 page pdf, Volume 16. Number 1, May 2010) Also discussed here: World Transport Policy & Practice – Vol. 16, No. 2(World /Streets, Aug. 31, 2010) And here: Manual for Streets(146 page pdf, UK Dept. of Transport, 2010) And here: Byward Market Pedestrian Area(Pollution Free Cities, Oct.2, 2009) As [...]

Proximity and Exposure to Air Pollution

Image by Getty Images via @daylife From Good Intentions to Proven Interventions: Effectiveness of Actions to Reduce the Health Impacts of Air Pollution (42 page pdf, Environ Health Perspect,  20 August 2010) The article reviewed today reported on the association between proximity to high air pollutant concentrations and health impacts for various time intervals. It [...]

CO2 Emissions from Transportation Projects

Image via Wikipedia Reducing Carbon Emissions from Transport Projects (107 page pdf, Asian Development Bank,  July 2010) By the careful use of energy intensity models, this report quantified the amount of CO2 reductions that may be achieved through various scenarios or options in transportation projects, such as congestion pricing and by reductions possible from various [...]

Is Access to Transportation a Basic Human Right?

Life, Liberty and the Pursuit of Accessibility (Streetsblog, June 11, 2010) Also discussed here: Mobility as a Basic Human Right (Streetsblog, Oct. 23, 2009) And here: Driving is a Privilege; Accessibility is a Right (A Place of Sense, June 11. 2010) The demand for transportation leads one to ask if mobility is a basic human [...]

What Does a Car Really Cost?

How much is that car really costing? You? The rest of us? (World Streets, May 24, 2010) Also discussed here: Transportation Cost and Benefit Analysis Techniques, Estimates and Implications (500 page pdf in sections, Victoria Transport Policy Institute, Jan.2,  2009) And here: Transportation Cost Analysis Spreadsheet (Excel spreadsheet, Victoria Transport Policy Institute, Jan.2, 2009) And [...]

Pedestrian Safety in Cities

No Accident: Traffic and Pedestrians in the Modern City (20 page pdf, Mobilities Vol. 5, No. 1, 41–59, February 2010) Also discussed here: No Accident: Traffic and Pedestrians in the Modern City (World Streets, May 14, 2010) This article examines the safety of pedestrians when confronted by traffic in modern cities, using the concept of [...]

Automobile Dependence and the Future of Roads

Image via Wikipedia The future for roads in 2050 – Australian perspectives on sustainable transportation (World Streets, Apr. 23, 2010) Also discussed here: RESILIENT CITIES – Responding to the Crash, Peak Oil and Climate Change (151 page pdf slideshow, Peter Newman, Professor of Sustainability, Curtin University, Australia) And here: Sustainable Urban Transport – Responding to [...]

Car Free Schools – only in Canada, you say?

Milton school forces to students to walk (Spacing Toronto, Mar. 25, 2010) Also discussed here: A One of a Kind Walking, Biking School Opens in Canada (School Transportation News, Jan. 12, 2010) Associated reference: Children & Cities: Planning to Grow Together (24 page pdf, Vanier Institute of the Family,  Oct. 2009) Today’s article is not [...]

30 kph as a Speed Limit

Braking point – 20mph speed limits in London (46 page pdf, Greater London Authority Transport Committee, April 2009) Also discussed here: How London Is Saving Lives With 20 MPH Zones (World Streets, Mar. 23, 2010) And here: Slow Down Many cities have 50-60 kph speed limits on residential streets despite evidence that these pose a [...]

Is Jaywalking Safer?

Pedestrian Survival Techniques (Discovering Urbanism, Mar. 8, 2010) Although the focus of this blog is the challenge posed in cities with traffic, pollution and health impacts, there are indirect issues such as pedestrian safety that need to be addressed. This article examines the issue of jaywalking and suggests that this is safer than to jaywalk [...]

How the Choice of School affects Air Quality

Vehicle Emissions during Children’s School Commuting: Impacts of Education Policy (7 page pdf, Environ. Sci. Technol., 2010, 44 (5), pp 1537–1543, January 28, 2010) Also discussed here: What is the best `school run` for the environment? (Science for Environment Policy – European Commission DG Environment News Alert Service, Mar. 12, 2010) Not surprisingly, if one selects [...]

Benchmarks for Walking and Cycling

Bicycling and Walking In the United States: 2 0 1 0 Benchmarking Report (196 pages pdf, Alliance for Biking & Walking, 2010) This report from the U.S. examines measurable indicators of walking and cycling, as well as comparison with other countries. Benchmark reports of this type have also been done in Canada in this report: [...]

Air Pollution and Marathons

Effect of Air Pollution on Marathon Running Performance (Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise, 2010; 42 (3)) Also discussed here: Women More Affected Than Men by Air Pollution When Running Marathons (Science Daily, Mar. 2, 2010) This analysis describes the greater impact of PM on female performance during marathons than on that of male [...]

Exposure of Commuters to Air Pollution

Commuters’ Exposure to Particulate Matter Air Pollution is Affected by Mode of Transport, Fuel Type and Route (35 page pdf, Environ Health Perspect, 25 February 2010) Key Quotes: “The aim of the study was to quantify differences in exposure to air pollutants in traffic compared to simultaneously measured urban background concentrations, and to examine the [...]

Slow Down

No need for speed (NOW, February 17-24, 2010, VOL 29 NO 25) Key Quotes “Speed (not just speeding) matters.. At 50 km/h.. cars will kill almost half of pedestrians struck. At 30 km/h or less, 19 in 20 will survive” “lowering speed by an average of 3 km/h would reduce U.S. deaths by 9,000 annually.. [...]

Car-Free Downtowns

The Pedestrianisation of Cities (This Big City, Feb. 15, 2010) Many cities are finding that the best to free the downtown areas of pollution is to get rd of the cars that cause the problem. New York City, leading the way in North America that many European cities began long ago, has just made Times [...]

Mobility Management and VMT Reduction Options

Are Vehicle Travel Reduction Targets Justified? (31 page pdf, Victoria Transport Policy Institute, Dec. 16, 2009) – VMT critics assume that  roadway expansion or more fuel efficient vehicles  will reduce vehicle emissions and improve air quality – others point to the need to manage the growth of traffic volume which is directly correlated with VMT [...]

We’re Thru

We’re Thru  - Has the American romance with the drive-through gone sour? (Slate, Dec. 11, 2009) – the City of Ottawa passed Idling Control BY-LAW NO. 2007 – 266 which came into effect September 1, 2007 and gives those who idle for more than 3 minutes a hefty fine. Exisiting Drive-Thrus were exempted but future [...]

“Siamo tutti pedoni” – We’re all pedestrians

Today’s post recognizes that the most pollution free form of transportation: walking, coming as it is on the last day of critical negotiations in Copenhagen on ways to mitigate the impact of climate change Conference Programme | COP 15. The World Streets blog featured today the exhibition of cartoons about pedestrians, showing in Bologna from 19 December [...]

Tracking Air Pollution by Cell Phone

Californians and Cell Phones to Track Air Pollution “San Diego County has 3.1 million residents, 4,000 square miles, and only five official EPA air quality monitors. We know about the air quality in those exact spots but we know much less about the air quality in other places.” “The goal of CitiSense is to build [...]

Health Benefits of GHG Emission Reductions-Transit, Cycling, Walking

Public health benefi ts of strategies to reduce greenhouse-gas emissions: urban land transport Additional discussion here: More Foot Power, Less Car Pollution Best for Health (US News) Key Quotes: “health effects of alternative urban land transport scenarios for two settings—London, UK, and Delhi, India.” “developed separate models that linked transport scenarios with physical activity, air [...]

“No Road Pays for Itself”

At CNU, Representative of Texas Legislature says “No Road Pays for Itself” (LA Streets Blog) Some great quotes from elected officials on the issue of who should pay for the roads, particularly for roads mainly used by commuters from suburban areas (but there’s no mention of road pricing) “The reason there’s not a new transportation [...]

Dangerous by Design

Dangerous By Design: Solving the Epidemic of Preventable Pedestrian Deaths (and Making Great Neighborhoods) (84 page pdf) – a ranking of American cities (by the Transportation for America and the Surface Transportation Policy Partnership) of the mortal risk faced by pedestrians because of the design of the roads and lack of safety features for pedestrians. [...]

Byward Market Pedestrian Area

If approved by City Council, this proposal could improve the air quality in the most polluted part of Ottawa (as shown in a recent inventory of the City’s air quality)by removing some traffic from a small part of the market. ByWard Market plan would dedicate area to pedestrians Ref: INVENTORY OF AIR CONTAMINANTS AND GREENHOUSE [...]

World Car Free Day- Sept 22

World Carfree Day 2009 Over 100,000 million people in more than 1500 cities worldwide  celebrate a move away from car culture Carfree Cities – proposes a delightful solution  to the vexing problem of urban automobiles. Car-Free Day Montreal: A Measurable Difference “Attracting in the upwards of 50,000 people in 2007, In Town, Without My Car! [...]

Twenty is plenty

Twenty is plenty Key Quotes: “A pedestrian hit by a car at 40 mph has a 95% chance of being killed, at 30 mph this becomes 50% and at 20 mph it becomes 5%.” “Most child pedestrian road deaths would be averted if people drove at 20mph in side streets. As few places are more [...]