Walking, wheeling and cycling

What do we mean when we say walking, wheeling and cycling?

A healthy neighbourhood is one that we can safely navigate by walking, cycling or wheeling (which includes activities such as rollerblading, skateboarding and using a wheelchair or mobility scooter). This relates to the infrastructure provided, the design of streets and the extent to which the space encourages and facilitates residents’ movement, allowing for connectivity between key spaces such as schools, local amenities and public transport. Our neighbourhoods should provide attractive, usable and safe walking, wheeling and cycling routes for all.

Encouraging different modes of transport within and around neighbourhoods is an important part of creating safer, healthier and cleaner neighbourhoods. Often, improving the accessibility of streets through investment in walking, wheeling and cycling improvements has a number of secondary benefits that dramatically improve quality of life. [92]

How does this affect health and wellbeing?

Multiple studies have highlighted the positive impact of ‘walkable’ neighbourhoods on people’s levels of physical activity and, consequently, on their health [93], [94], [95]. People who walk or cycle to work have a reduced risk of early death or illness than those who commute by car.96 Importantly, the estimated benefits of the increased physical activity caused by shifting to an active mode of travel – walking or cycling – greatly outweigh the detrimental effects of traffic incidents or exposure to air pollution. [97]

These positive health impacts can be enhanced further by well-designed infrastructure, as people walking, wheeling or cycling are generally exposed to lower concentrations of air pollution when using routes that are separated from motorised traffic. [98] It is important to remember, however, that an individual’s health can also impact their transport choices. People with mobility issues are more likely to experience negative transport impacts, as more active modes of travel may not be suitable. [99] This means that having a variety of accessible, affordable transport options is essential. We should design neighbourhoods to encourage more people to walk, wheel and cycle for local trips, whilst recognising that these options won’t always be suitable for everyone. Much can be achieved by tipping the balance, making the car slightly less convenient and walking, wheeling and cycling slightly easier.

Case study

Getting around: Icon and Houndwood Street, Somerset

The Icon neighbourhood is built on the original Clarks shoe factory site in Street, a Victorian industrial market town of 11,100 residents. The scheme accepts that many people need to use cars – particularly in a semi-rural location – but aims to integrate car parking in a more sensitive manner, creating a ‘shared space’ environment that provides equal rights for cars, pedestrians and cyclists.