Background and aims of the work

The transportation sector represents a significant contributor to greenhouse gases emitted in Europe. The introduction of more efficient cars and reducing vehicular travel are essential components of climate change mitigation policies across the continent. Shifting the population towards active modes of transportation (e.g. cycling, walking) represents a particularly promising strategy with a high potential of public health co-benefits. Such change may result in a sustained increase in physical activity in the population – a major requirement to abate the obesity epidemic.

Other potential benefits include improvements in environmental quality indicators such as ambient air pollution and noise, as well as in the social environment (social capital) and quality of urban life, and related health impacts. However, depending on local conditions and policies, these strategies may also result in adverse health effects as inhalation of air pollutants may increase among those physically active along traffic arteries and traffic accident rates may increase. Currently there is no holistic framework and related tools for policy makers to evaluate these inputs and expected health impacts.

The purpose of the TAPAS research programme (from the 1st of March 2009 until the 28th of February 2013) is to help decision makers design urban policies that address climate change and also promote other health-related outcomes. In particular, we are interested in assessing conditions and policies that hinder or encourage active travel, and resulting health impacts. We will develop a tool box for policy makers to calculate and demonstrate the potential net health benefits of their policies, which they can use to encourage change. A quantitative assessment of impacts of active travel policies will be developed for six case study cities: Barcelona, Basel, Copenhagen, Paris, Prague, and Warsaw. We will collect existing data and take additional measurements to assess determinants of active travel and potential co-benefits and co-risks of modal shifts from motorized to non-motorized modes of travel.The work is expected to lead to healthy and active lifestyles by providing an evidence base for designing optimal policies that will encourage a change to active transportation leading to an increase in physical activity and provide other health and environmental benefits.

RECENT ACTIVITY (link)