Purpose. Travel surveys have been used to understand variations of physically-active and inactive travel behaviours. However, most existing studies have used data from North America, Europe, and Australasia. No research appears to have used travel survey data collected in Asian cities from a health perspective. This study examined the distribution of active and inactive travel behaviours in a regional centre and its suburbs in Japan. 

Methods. This study used travel survey data of Shizuoka city (population: 700,000) and adjacent three municipalities (total population: 380,000). Study participants were 42,713 adults aged 20–74 years who reported any trip on their survey day (mean age 51 years, 51% women). The outcome variables were the prevalence of walking, walking over 30 minutes/day, cycling, use of public transportation [PT], car use, and prolonged car use (≥ 1 hr/day). Multilevel logistic regression analysis was performed to examine the difference between Shizuoka and its suburbs. 

Results. The prevalence of each travel behaviour was 25% for walking, 11% for walking over 30 minutes/day, 19% for cycling, 11% for PT use, 64% for car use, and 27% for prolonged car use. Relative to residents of Shizuoka, those living in its suburbs had a lower odds of walking (OR=0.53 [95%CI: 0.46, 0.61]), walking over 30 minutes/day (OR=0.60 [0.51, 0.69]), cycling (OR=0.40 [0.33, 0.49]), PT use (OR=0.67 [0.58, 0.77]) after adjusting for demographic covariates. In contrast, suburb residents had a higher odds of car use (OR=2.53 [2.24, 2.85]) and prolonged car use (OR= 1.42 [1.29, 1.55]) than Shizuoka residents (all ORs significant at p<0.001).

Conclusions. We used travel survey data from a region of Asia for the first time in relation to public health and found low prevalence of walking and high prevalence of car use: only a quarter of participants engaged in walking and more than quarter of them used cars over 1 hr/day. Suburb residents especially tend to rely on cars for daily travel. Inactive lifestyles may be a public health concern in this part of Japan.

Background. Active transport has huge potential to increase daily physical activity; especially among residents of areas where many local destinations (e.g. shops) are available. Also public transport can increase physical activity levels, since it is often a more active alternative to private motorized transport. However, to change people’s transport behavior, transport infrastructure needs to be adequately adapted. In this study, we will evaluate the change in travel behavior due to a comprehensive transport intervention plan introduced in April 2017 in Ghent, Belgium. The plan focused on limiting car accessibility in the city center while promoting active and public transport modes. Secondly, we will evaluate potentially increased social disparities in active transport use. 

Methods. An independent partner of the city council collected transport surveys in 2012 (N = 2227), 2015 (N = 1870) and 2018 (N = 2118) from residents of Ghent, Belgium. The travel surveys included questions on personal characteristics (e.g. age), regular transport behavior, and a detailed transport diary for one complete day. From the transport diary, following variables will be analyzed (all in minutes per day): active transport use (walking and biking), physically-active and non-active time during public transport, and time in private motorized transport. Social disparities in physically-active transport  will be measured by mean household income and educational level of the residential area. 

Results. Preliminary results show the following transport mode shifts between 2015 and 2018 among the general population: a decrease in walking trips (15% to 13%), an increase in bicycle trips (30% to 35%), an increase in public transport trips (5% to 9%) and a decrease in private motorized trips (40% to 33%). Analyzing the changes between 2012 and 2015 will provide information on the ‘normal’ evolution of travel behavior. Future analyses will indicate if the changes in transport behavior coincide with increased social disparities.

Conclusion. Potentially, we will find growing social disparities in active transport use. This could be important information for policy makers in Ghent for setting priorities in future mobility plans.

Background. Promoting physically-active travel is a public-health objective. Travel surveys are a resource to understand how people move in and around their localities. However, such surveys tend to focus on major cities, and little is known about how residents of other regions travel. Data from large-scale household travel surveys in Queensland, Australia were used to examine geographical variations in physically-active and inactive travel behaviours among adults who live in satellite and regional cities, compared to the major (state capital) city.

Methods. Study participants were adults who reported any trip on the survey day in a 24-hr travel diary in five Queensland Travel Surveys conducted between 2009 and 2014 (N=36,329). They were grouped according to place of residence: major city (Brisbane: N=11,762); satellite cities (Gold Coast, Sunshine Coast: N=11,109); and regional cities (Cairns, Townsville, Mackay, and Rockhampton: N=13,458). Logistic regressions examined the odds of participating in active and inactive travel behaviours, according to city category.

Results. Overall, 14.8% of participants reported any walking, 7.3% walked over 30 min/day, 4.7% used public transport (PT), and 42.3% used cars over 1 hr/day. Compared to Brisbane residents, those in satellite and regional cities were less likely to walk and use PT. The odds ratios (ORs; all p<0.01) of any walking, walking over 30 min/day, and PT use were 0.58, 0.64, and 0.24 for satellite cities, and 0.60, 0.82, and 0.12 for regional cities, respectively. Regional city residents were less likely to use cars over 1 hr/day (OR: 0.82) relative to those in Brisbane.

Discussion. Residents of regional cities in Queensland were less likely to walk and to use PT compared to those of Brisbane, potentially due to poorer access to local destinations and PT stops. However, they were less likely to use cars for a prolonged period. Residents of satellite cities were the least physically active for travel. Physical activity initiatives addressing lower levels of active travel for Australian satellite and regional cities may require different strategies than those used in the major cities.