Researchers use Walk Score data to study the effects of the built environment on public health.
The following selected public health research uses Walk Score data or is related to walkability and public health. Walk Score data is used to study the links between the built environment and physical activity, the built environment and obesity, and the built environment and diabetes. Walk Score data can also be used to study the effects of food deserts, park deserts, or how access to public transit influences public health.
See also: Walkability Real Estate Research on Walk Score.
Selected Research
"Street Smart Walk Score is a strongly significant predictor of MVPA (moderate to vigorous physical activity)"
Larry Frank (2011) Walk Score Across the Life-Span, Active Living Research"The only variable that was statistically significant is the Walk Score index (p=0.048), indicating cities with a higher accessibility of amenities within walking distance are likely to have 1.9% lower rates of adult obesity."
Daniel Murray (2011) Active Transportation Networks and Obesity Rates. University of Colorado, Denver"Increasing levels of walkability decrease the risks of excess weight. Approximately doubling the proportion of neighborhood residents walking to work decreases an individual's risk of obesity by almost 10%. Adding a decade to the average age of neighborhood housing decreases women's risk of obesity by about 8% and men's by 13%."
Ken R. Smith, Barbara B. Brown, Ikuho Yamada, Lori Kowaleski-Jones, Cathleen D. Zick, and Jessie X. Fan (2008) Walkability and Body Mass Index. American Journal of Preventive Medicine"Together with many other studies, our analysis provides evidence of the population-level health benefits of active travel. Policies on transport, land-use, and urban development should be designed to encourage walking and cycling for daily travel."
John Pucher, Ralph Buehler, David R. Bassett, and Andrew L. Dannenberg (2010) Walking and Cycling to Health: A Comparative Analysis of City, State, and International Data, American Journal of Public Health"A 10 point increase in Walk Score is associated with 9 more minutes per week of walking."
Jana A. Hirsch, Kari A. Moore, Kelly R. Evenson, Daniel A. Rodriguez, and Ana V. Diez Roux (2013) Walk Score and Transit Score and Walking in the Multi-Ethnic Study of Atherosclerosis, American Journal of Preventive Medicine
Public Health Research
- Dustin T. Duncan, ScD. 2013. What's Your Walk Score? Web-Based Neighborhood Walkability Assessment for Health Promotion and Disease Prevention. American Journal of Preventive Medicine.
- Scott C. Brown, Hilda Pantin, Joanna Lombard, Matthew Toro, Shi Huang, Elizabeth Plater-Zyberk, Tatiana Perrino, Gianna Perez-Gomez, Lloyd Barrera-Allen, Jose Szapocznik. 2013. Walk Score: Associations with Purposive Walking in Recent Cuban Immigrants. American Journal of Preventive Medicine.
- Maizlish, Neil, James Woodcock, Sean Co, Bart Ostro, Amir Fanai, and David Fairley. 2013. Health Cobeneļ¬ts And Transportation-related Reductions In Greenhouse Gas Emissions Inthe San Francisco Bay Area. American Journal of Public Health.
- Arvidsson D., U. Eriksson, S.L. Lonn, K. Sundquist. 2012. Neighborhood Walkability, Income, and Hour-by-Hour Physical Activity Patterns. Center for Primary Health Care Research, Lund University, Malmo, Sweden.
- Freeman L., K. Neckerman, O. Schwartz-Soicher, J. Quinn, C. Richards, M.D. Bader, G. Lovasi, D. Jack, C. Weiss, K. Konty, P. Arno, D. Viola, B. Kerker, A.G. Rundle. 2012. Neighborhood Walkability and Active Travel (Walking and Cycling) in New York City. Graduate School of Architecture, Planning and Preservation, Columbia University.
- Sohna, Dong Wook, Anne Vernez Moudon and Jeasun Lee. 2012. The economic value of walkable neighborhoods. Urban Design International 17.
- Booth, Gillian L., Maria I. Creatore, Rahim Moineddin, Peter Gozdyra, Jonathan T. Weyman, Flora I. Matheson, and Richard H. Glazier. 2012. Unwalkable Neighborhoods, Poverty, and the Risk of Diabetes Among Recent Immigrants to Canada Compared With Long-Term Residents. American Diabetes Association.
- Litman, Todd Alexander. 2011. Economic Value of Walkability. Victoria Transport Policy Institute (VTPI).
- Manaugh, Kevin, Ahmed M. El-Geneidy. 2011. Validating walkability indices: How do different households respond to the walkability of their neighbourhood?. Transportation research Part D: Transport and Environment, 16(4), 309 - 315.
- Duncan, Dustin T., Jared Aldstadt, John Whalen, Steven J. Melly, and Steven L Gortmaker. 2011. Validation of Walk Score® for Estimating Neighborhood Walkability: An Analysis of Four US Metropolitan Areas. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health 8, No. 11: 4160-4179..
- Murray, Daniel. 2011. Active Transportation Networks and Obesity Rates. University of Colorado, Denver.
- Pucher, John, Ralph Buehler, David R. Bassett, and Andrew L. Dannenberg. 2010. Walking and Cycling to Health: A Comparative Analysis of City, State, and International Data. American Journal of Public Health, Vol. 100, No. 10.
- Jones, Lindsey Irene. 2010. Investigating Neighborhood Walkability and its Association with Physical Activity Levels and Body Composition of a Sample of Maryland Adolescent Girls, Epidemiology and Biostatistics, University of Maryland, College Park.
- Schuchter, Joseph, John Besl, and Lisa Simpson. 2010. Vision 2015: Child Health in Northern Kentucky. Child Policy Research Center.
- Bassett, David R., Holly R. Wyatt, Helen Thompson, John Peters, and John James O. Hill. 2010. Pedometer-Measured Physical Activity and Health Behaviors in U.S. Adults. Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise, Vol. 42, No. 10.
- Berry, Tanya R., John C. Spence, Chris M. Blanchard, Nicoleta Cutumisu, Joy Edwards, and Genevieve Selfridge. 2010. A longitudinal and cross-sectional examination of the relationship between reasons for choosing a neighbourhood, physical activity and body mass index. International Journal of Behavioral Nutrition and Physical Activity.
- Litman, Todd. 2010. Evaluating Public Transportation Health Benefits. Victoria Transport Policy Institute (VTPI).
- Crabtree, Steve. 2010. Wellbeing Lower Among Workers With Long Commutes. Gallup.
- Brewster, Mark, David Hurtado, Sara Olson, and Jessica Yen. 2009. Walkscore.com: A New Methodology to Explore Associations between Neighborhood Resources, Race and Health. Department of Society, Human Development, and Health, Harvard School of Public Health.
- Frank, Lawrence, and Sarah Kavage. 2009. A National Plan for Physical Activity: The Enabling Role of the Built Environment. Journal of Physical Activity 6 (Suppl. 2):186-195.
- Smith, Ken R., Barbara B. Brown, Ikuho Yamada, Lori Kowaleski-Jones, Cathleen D. Zick, and Jessie X. Fan. 2008. Walkability and Body Mass Index. American Journal of Preventive Medicine, Vol. 35, Issue 3.
- Lee, Chanam, and Anne Vernez Moudon. 2008. Neighbourhood design and physical activity. Building Research and Information 36 (5):395-411.
- Berke, Ethan M., Thomas D. Koepsell, Anne Vernez Moudon, Richard E. Hoskins, and Eric B. Larson. 2007. Association of the Built Environment With Physical Activity and Obesity in Older Persons. American Journal of Public Health, Vol. 97, No. 3.
- Lee, Chanam, and Anne Vernez Moudon. 2006. The 3Ds + R: Quantifying land use and urban form correlates of walking. Transportation Research Part D 11:204-215.