Transport Policy, Urban Planning, and Public Health
Do our cities make us fat? Is traffic noise making us deaf? Are emissions making us sick? Is congestion making us depressed? Is the transport system killing us? In an era of growing urbanisation, motorisation, and mobility, questions like these are increasingly concerning for researchers and the population at large. This article e-collection seeks to provide some answers. It focuses on the multiple interconnections between transport policy, urban planning, and public health through a set of literature reviews.
An approach that combines land use, transport, and health is, in a sense, a return to the roots of the planning profession, which was born in the early 20th century as a response to the pollution and overcrowding experienced by the masses in industrial cities. While early planners were well-meaning, some of their ideas, such as land-use segregation and low-density urban living, led to negative outcomes, including sprawl and extreme automobility. The latter are now blamed for poor health outcomes, but the research evidence is somewhat patchy and contradictory.
Given a rise in non-communicable diseases, the urban planning and public health disciplines are now poised to restore their earlier symbiotic relationship. However, this requires a stronger research evidence base. Each review article in this e-collection provides an up-to-date synthesis of the available peer-reviewed research, which can be used to inform future studies, as well as policy-making on transport, land use, and human health. All authors conclude their review by identifying recommendations for future research and policy-making agendas.