A new study finds that the cost of building urban river parkways and other recreational facilities is more than offset by the savings in public health costs, such as obesity.
Melanie Curry shares news of a new report, called Urban River Parkways: An Essential Tool for Public Health [PDF], which "concludes that building walking and bike paths, parcourses, and other recreational facilities along urban rivers can provide major public health benefits and cost savings to individuals and to society by giving people opportunities to be physically active in relatively enjoyable, stress-free environs."
The report is out of UCLA’s Center for Occupational and Environmental Health and authored among others, by Dr. Richard Jackson, who told Curry that the report is the first to look at urban river parkways as a health issue.
According to Curry's coverage, "[the] report compares the costs of building recreational facilities with medical costs resulting from inactivity, and concludes that spending money on facilities more than pays for itself in healthcare cost savings. It concludes that 'urban river parkways can be viable, cost-effective health interventions that help direct efforts towards prevention rather than treatment, and increased public utilization increases the benefits with only small increases in the cost of maintenance.'"
FULL STORY: Report: Urban River Parkways a Cure for Many Ills
Is Your City Swimmable?
An interview with organizers of the inaugural Swimmable Cities Summit, which took place this June 22-24 in Rotterdam, NL.
Indy Neighborhood Group Builds Temporary Multi-Use Path
Community members, aided in part by funding from the city, repurposed a vehicle lane to create a protected bike and pedestrian path for the summer season.
River Seine ‘Teeming’ With Life
Decades of restoration efforts are yielding positive results as dozens of species of fish return to the once-polluted waterway.
Planetizen Federal Action Tracker
A weekly monitor of how Trump’s orders and actions are impacting planners and planning in America.
Chicago’s Ghost Rails
Just beneath the surface of the modern city lie the remnants of its expansive early 20th-century streetcar system.
Amtrak Cutting Jobs, Funding to High-Speed Rail
The agency plans to cut 10 percent of its workforce and has confirmed it will not fund new high-speed rail projects.
Ohio Forces Data Centers to Prepay for Power
Utilities are calling on states to hold data center operators responsible for new energy demands to prevent leaving consumers on the hook for their bills.
MARTA CEO Steps Down Amid Citizenship Concerns
MARTA’s board announced Thursday that its chief, who is from Canada, is resigning due to questions about his immigration status.
Silicon Valley ‘Bike Superhighway’ Awarded $14M State Grant
A Caltrans grant brings the 10-mile Central Bikeway project connecting Santa Clara and East San Jose closer to fruition.
Urban Design for Planners 1: Software Tools
This six-course series explores essential urban design concepts using open source software and equips planners with the tools they need to participate fully in the urban design process.
Planning for Universal Design
Learn the tools for implementing Universal Design in planning regulations.
Caltrans
City of Fort Worth
Mpact (founded as Rail~Volution)
City of Camden Redevelopment Agency
City of Astoria
City of Portland
City of Laramie