It's difficult to definitively link transit use with lower rates of obesity, but it makes intuitive sense. Here's another attempt, using county-level data.
Transit usually requires some walking, but it really doesn't feel like "exercise," just like getting to work. Tom Jacobs writes, "Taking the bus or train usually means walking to your final destination, thus providing an automatic period of pound-shedding daily exercise."
The authors of a new study in Preventative Medicine attempted to isolate that effect. "Using data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, they noted the percentage of each county's residents that are obese, as well as the percentage that take part in 'leisure time physical activity' such as running or various sports."
The study found that on average, "a one percent increase in country population usage of public transit is associated with a 0.2 percent decrease (in the obesity rate)."
Read the full story: All Aboard! Next Stop, Less Obesity!
Obesity Tied to Suburban Life
London-based study ties obesity to sprawl and finds that suburbs have a bigger obesity problem than rural areas.
Study: Active Commutes Correlate to Positive Public Health Outcomes
The Alliance for Biking and Walking’s 2014 Benchmarking report found a strong correlation between active commuting rates and health outcomes like diabetes, obesity, and high blood pressure.
What's More Dangerous - Cycling or Watching TV?
As Britain confronts the silent epidemic of inactivity and obesity, Peter Walker examines how the invisible dangers of a sedentary lifestyle are compared to the more publicized risk of injury from activities designed to get people moving.
Planetizen Federal Action Tracker
A weekly monitor of how Trump’s orders and actions are impacting planners and planning in America.
California plans to bury El Niño’s downpour
If the state plays its cards right, it may be able to store a billion acre-feet of El Niño’s water in aquifers.
Desperate measures: Advocates weigh draining Lake Powell to fill Colorado River
Draining the reservoir could reduce evaporation losses by a couple hundred thousand acre-feet.
US buildings threatened, destroyed by fires set to triple by 2060
Researchers found a high fire risk for socioeconomically vulnerable neighborhoods in the American West.
LA residents may be allowed to paint their own crosswalks
Councilwoman Katy Yaroslavsky put out a motion instructing the Los Angeles Department of Public Transportation to study the feasibility of allowing volunteers to paint crosswalks.
Dallas moves to overhaul its zoning code
The city's zoning reform will allow more multi-family and mixed-use developments.
FREE Course: Walkable City 1: Why Walkability?
After describing his path towards focusing on walkability as the essence of good planning, Jeff Speck marches through his five principal reasons for making more walkable places.
Reinventing Malls: Planning Alchemy—Turning Gray Fields Into Gold
The course focuses on the opportunities and imperatives that shape reinvention of mall sites.
City of Rosemead
Rutgers University, Edward J. Bloustein School of Planning and Public Policy
One Hundred Miles
Hunter College, City University of New York (CUNY)
The Architects Foundation
University of Cincinnati Online
City of Cambridge
Montrose County
The Pocatello Development Authority