Does Environmental Walkability Matter? The Role of Walkable Environment in Active Commuting
Since walkability plays an important role in active commuting, several cities are actively promoting its integration into urban and environmental planning policies. This study examined the association between walkability and active commuting in Seoul, Korea. A multilevel logistic regression model wa...
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doaj-bd6945fd560f4f39a842348a0383bdd02020-11-25T00:15:38ZengMDPI AGInternational Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health1660-46012020-02-01174126110.3390/ijerph17041261ijerph17041261Does Environmental Walkability Matter? The Role of Walkable Environment in Active CommutingEun Jung Kim0Jiyeong Kim1Hyunjung Kim2Department of Urban Planning, Keimyung University, 1095 Dalgubeol-daero, Dalseo-gu, Daegu 42601, KoreaDepartment of Urban Planning, Keimyung University, 1095 Dalgubeol-daero, Dalseo-gu, Daegu 42601, KoreaDepartment of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Seoul National University, Gwanak-ro 1, Gwanak-gu, Seoul 08826, KoreaSince walkability plays an important role in active commuting, several cities are actively promoting its integration into urban and environmental planning policies. This study examined the association between walkability and active commuting in Seoul, Korea. A multilevel logistic regression model was used to examine the correlation between Walkability Score and the probability of active commuting after controlling for individual variables. The analysis used 129,044 individual samples nested within 424 administrative districts (dongs). In this study, three models were tested: Model 1 contained only individual variables, Model 2 contained individual variables and Walkability Score, and Model 3 included neighborhood-level variables in addition to the variables of Model 2. The results showed that the Walkability Score was significantly correlated with the odds of active commuting. Specifically, every additional one-point increase in Walkability Score was associated with 0.3% higher odds of active commuting (Model 2: odds ratio (OR) = 1.003, 95% confidence interval (CI) = 1.001−1.005; Model 3: OR = 1.003, 95% CI = 1.001−1.006). Additionally, public transportation density was also positively correlated with the odds of active commuting. The odds of active commuting were positively correlated with younger age, female, lower-income, and having no car. Based on the findings, policy recommendations in urban planning and design, transport engineering, and environmental planning are provided.https://www.mdpi.com/1660-4601/17/4/1261active commutingwalkingcyclingwalk scorewalkability score, multilevel logistic regression modelgeographic information system (gis)seoul |
collection |
DOAJ |
language |
English |
format |
Article |
sources |
DOAJ |
author |
Eun Jung Kim Jiyeong Kim Hyunjung Kim |
spellingShingle |
Eun Jung Kim Jiyeong Kim Hyunjung Kim Does Environmental Walkability Matter? The Role of Walkable Environment in Active Commuting International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health active commuting walking cycling walk score walkability score, multilevel logistic regression model geographic information system (gis) seoul |
author_facet |
Eun Jung Kim Jiyeong Kim Hyunjung Kim |
author_sort |
Eun Jung Kim |
title |
Does Environmental Walkability Matter? The Role of Walkable Environment in Active Commuting |
title_short |
Does Environmental Walkability Matter? The Role of Walkable Environment in Active Commuting |
title_full |
Does Environmental Walkability Matter? The Role of Walkable Environment in Active Commuting |
title_fullStr |
Does Environmental Walkability Matter? The Role of Walkable Environment in Active Commuting |
title_full_unstemmed |
Does Environmental Walkability Matter? The Role of Walkable Environment in Active Commuting |
title_sort |
does environmental walkability matter? the role of walkable environment in active commuting |
publisher |
MDPI AG |
series |
International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health |
issn |
1660-4601 |
publishDate |
2020-02-01 |
description |
Since walkability plays an important role in active commuting, several cities are actively promoting its integration into urban and environmental planning policies. This study examined the association between walkability and active commuting in Seoul, Korea. A multilevel logistic regression model was used to examine the correlation between Walkability Score and the probability of active commuting after controlling for individual variables. The analysis used 129,044 individual samples nested within 424 administrative districts (dongs). In this study, three models were tested: Model 1 contained only individual variables, Model 2 contained individual variables and Walkability Score, and Model 3 included neighborhood-level variables in addition to the variables of Model 2. The results showed that the Walkability Score was significantly correlated with the odds of active commuting. Specifically, every additional one-point increase in Walkability Score was associated with 0.3% higher odds of active commuting (Model 2: odds ratio (OR) = 1.003, 95% confidence interval (CI) = 1.001−1.005; Model 3: OR = 1.003, 95% CI = 1.001−1.006). Additionally, public transportation density was also positively correlated with the odds of active commuting. The odds of active commuting were positively correlated with younger age, female, lower-income, and having no car. Based on the findings, policy recommendations in urban planning and design, transport engineering, and environmental planning are provided. |
topic |
active commuting walking cycling walk score walkability score, multilevel logistic regression model geographic information system (gis) seoul |
url |
https://www.mdpi.com/1660-4601/17/4/1261 |
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