ECONOMIC AND HEALTH METRICS OF ACTIVE SCHOOL TRAVEL: A PRACTICAL TOOL FOR TRANSPORTATION PLANNERS AND EDUCATORS

Abstract

The objective of this project was to complement school walkability measures with measures of health as outcomes related to rates of Active School Travel (AST). We carried out a meta-analysis of 11 studies measuring moderate to vigorous physical activity (MVPA) related to school travel We found that daily AST could contribute between 3 and 9 minutes of MVPA per child per day or 5 to 16 percent of a child’s daily MVPA as recommended by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Future research can add this health outcome metric to the Washington School Walk Score (WS*2), the individual school-level walk score that has been validated with data from the state’s Youth Travel Surveys. This work will create a tool, the Children Walking to School Tool, that treats the predictors of walking contained in the current WS*2 as inputs and health outcomes as outputs. Other health metrics related to the MVPA assigned to AST can be estimated, such as Disability Adjusted Life Years (DALYs) or health care costs savings, which would enrich the tool. A Children Walking to Health Tool will provide policy makers with evidence of the health outcomes of transportation investments. It will also include an interactive function, allowing policy makers and stakeholders to assess the health effects of interventions by changing the values of predictors of AST, such exposure to highly trafficked streets in the school neighborhood or the size of school enrollment.