2001/11/01 by Lawrence D. Frank, Peter Engelke, Peter O. Engelke · 429 citations
Environmental Science · Medicine · Social Sciences · #Obesity, Physical Activity, Diet #Urban Green Space and Health #Urban Transport and Accessibility
paper · doi:10.1177/08854120122093339
published in Journal of Planning Literature 16(2), 202-218 (SAGE Publications)
crossref issued 2001/11/01 · crossref published 2001/11/01 · crossref published-online 2001/11/01 · crossref published-print 2001/11/01 · openalex publication_date 2001/11/01 · crossref created 2003/07/19 · openalex created_date 2025/10/10 · crossref deposited 2026/04/30 · openalex updated_date 2026/07/22 · crossref indexed 2026/08/06
An increasing body of evidence suggests that moderate forms of physical activity (such as walking and bicycling), when engaged in regularly, can have important beneficial effects on public health. This article reviews current public health, planning, and urban design research to determine, first, how walking and bicycling might be critically important exercise behaviors for improving public health, second, how urban form affects the frequency of walking and bicycling as a form of physical activity, and third, how the public health considerations outlined in this article might reorient planners’ thinking toward the realization of health-promotive environments. The current lack of emphasis on the interdependencies between built form and overall quality of life, as measured by health, safety, and welfare considerations, suggests the need for a rethinking of public policy approaches to transportation investment and land development.