Health in Cities
The Chief Medical Officer, Professor Whitty, published the annual report on health in cities yesterday. https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/6756e67b43b2de5fee8dae87/cmo-annual-report-2024-health-in-cities.pdfThere is, of course, a section dedicated to Active Travel starting on page 333. It's really very good and many of the points will be familiar to my personal fan club on this forum. It sets out the case for Active Travel's role in creating healthier urban populations - integrating exercise into our daily movements has numerous health benefits. Then it outlines the barriers and how they need to be overcome. It is a short section and I encourage you all to read it. Here are a few excerpts:On car reduction: "Reducing private vehicle journeys and car dependency†45 by increasing active travel reduces air and noise pollution and levels of carbon emissions in cities. It also reduces traffic congestion, thereby increasing mobility, accessibility and speed of journeys, increasing productivity and economic benefits, and health equity for households without access to a vehicle.""Over-reliance of private cars is an inefficient use of city space. Supporting people to use active or sustainable travel frees up space for more health and wealth generating activities, e.g. space for play, community amenities, socialising and green spaces, all of which improve the quality of life in our cities."On deterrents to active travel:"Fear of cars and poor driving practices such as speeding are a major deterrent to active travel. Whilst the hierarchy of road users in the Highway Code (Figure 4.61) seeks to protect pedestrian and cyclists as the more vulnerable road users, this is not consistently applied in the design of infrastructure, or enforced. Some examples are when cars park in cycle lanes or when motorists assume they have right of way"
Paul Campbell ● 11d27 Comments ● 2d