Evaluating change in physical activity with the building of a multi-use trail

Effects of a new walking and cycling route on leisure-time physical activity of Brazilian adults: A longitudinal quasi-experiment

“…Besides, people living nearer walking and cycling routes may experience higher increases in PA level in the long-term (Goodman et al, 2014;Goodman et al, 2013). However, results are not consistent and some studies did not find evidence of significant increase in population PA practice (West and Shores, 2011;Goodman et al, 2013;Evenson et al, 2005) or a stronger effect of living closer to the new infrastructure, at least in the short-term (around one year time) (West and Shores 2011;Goodman et al, 2014;West and Shores 2015). These inconsistencies reflect the large heterogeneity among studies.…”

Can a Motivational Intervention Overcome an Unsupportive Environment for Walking—Findings from the Step-by-Step Study

“…Interventions involving infrastructure changes such as upgrading or constructing walking trails can provide better causal evidence but such interventions are limited [13][14][15][16][17]. In any event, these studies have generally failed to demonstrate population level effects on walking or other modes of activity (cycling), although they have supported significant changes in behavior among disadvantaged populations [13,15] or the least fit [17].…”

Bicycle boulevards and changes in physical activity and active transportation: Findings from a natural experiment

“…That study (Brownson et al, 2004) examined the promotion of trails, not new trail construction, and did not find a significant change in overall walking activity. Similarly, two other longitudinal studies without controls did not find a change in walking activity associated with trail promotion (Merom et al, 2003) or trail construction (Evenson et al, 2005). All three of these studies used surveys and self-reported measures of activity.…”

“…All three of these studies used surveys and self-reported measures of activity. The studies of trail promotion (Brownson et al, 2004;Merom et al, 2003) conducted surveys immediately following the intervention, while Evenson et al (2005) collected data two months following trail construction. A review of 25 studies of bicycle interventions identified three that included changes in bicycle infrastructure, all at a community-or city-scale, and all found significant increases in bicycling (Yang et al, 2010).…”