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Active travel to work in NSW: trends over time and the effect of social advantage
Author(s) -
Zander Alexis,
Rissel Chris,
Rogers Kris,
Bauman Adrian
Publication year - 2014
Publication title -
health promotion journal of australia
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.515
H-Index - 32
eISSN - 2201-1617
pISSN - 1036-1073
DOI - 10.1071/he14004
Subject(s) - geography , metropolitan area , socioeconomic status , journey to work , socioeconomics , census , population health , car ownership , index (typography) , demography , population , rural area , public transport , medicine , sociology , transport engineering , engineering , world wide web , computer science , archaeology , pathology
Issues addressed Active travel can increase population levels of physical activity, but should be promoted equitably. Socioeconomic advantage, housing location and/or car ownership influence walking and cycling (active travel) for transport. We examined active commuting over time in the Sydney Greater Metropolitan Region, and associations between active commuting and socioeconomic advantage, urban/rural location and car ownership at a Local Government Area (LGA) level across New South Wales (NSW). Methods Journey to work data from the 2001, 2006 and 2011 Australian Census were examined. Associations between levels of active commuting in each LGA in NSW and the Socio‐Economic Index for Areas (SEIFA), Accessibility/Remoteness Index of Australia (ARIA) and car ownership were examined using negative binomial regression modelling. Results Between 2001 and 2011, active commuting increased in inner Sydney (relative increase of 24%), decreased slightly in outer Sydney (declined 5.1%) and declined in the Greater Metropolitan Region (down 15%). Overall, active commuting increased slightly (6.8% relative increase). After adjusting for the LGA age and sex profile and all other LGA variables, people living in NSW LGAs with high socioeconomic status, more rural areas and low car ownership were more likely to cycle or walk to work. Conclusions More needs to be done in NSW to increase levels of active commuting consistently across regions and sociodemographic groups. So what? Despite small increases in active travel in the Sydney region, active travel patterns are not evenly distributed across locations or populations.