Health implications of transport: Evidence of effects of transport on social interactions

Abstract

a b s t r a c tSome links between transport and health are widely known, such as active travel, physical (in)activity, air pollution and injuries. Others are not as apparent and are much less studied, for example social interactions. This article reviews the evidence that transport impacts on social interactions, and that social interactions impact on health. It is an updated version of part of chapter 5 from Health on the Move 2.There is growing evidence that aspects of transport influence social exclusion, social capital, social cohesion and social networks. Numerous studies have identified associations between these aspects of social interaction and morbidity and mortality. Community severance -where transport infrastructure or the speed or volume of traffic act as a physical or psychological barrier -impacts on individuals' travel, social networks, and the accessibility of goods, services and facilities, and has scope to influence health through a number of routes. With the development of more comprehensive measures, such as of community severance, it is likely that there will be stronger evidence that transport influences health through these pathways.

The Anatomy of Health-Supportive Neighborhoods: A Multilevel Analysis of Built Environment, Perceived Disorder, Social Interaction and Mental Health in Beijing

“…Cabrera and Najarian (2015) discovered that adults living near main roads were disturbed by the heavy traffic volume and were less likely to know their neighbors [44]. The presence of public parking lots is also related to declining perceptions of neighborhood friendliness [52], whereas proximity to public transit is conducive to casual connections with neighbors [53]. Moreover, an interdisciplinary review argued that while physically deteriorated and pedestrian-unfriendly neighborhoods incur excessive environmental stressors that are detrimental to mental health, residents living in such neighborhoods are likely to increase, rather than restrict, their development of social relationships as a coping strategy against insufficient environmental resources [54].…”

The social perception of urban transport in the city of Madrid: the application of the Servicescape Model to the bus and underground services

“…It has made it possible to separate the distance between the workplace and the home to a much greater extent than ever before, thus enabling a more comfortable lifestyle [64]. Boniface et al [13], review the evidence that transport impacts social interactions and that social interactions impact health. Utsunomiya [67] has attempted to determine the role of local public transportation beyond social benefits.…”

“…In short, many papers analyse the social value of transport and its effects: waiting times [65], pollution reduction, environmental impact [13,21], social integration and interconnection [23,47,67]. However, there are few and more recent studies that attempt to analyse the social value from the users' perception and feelings.…”

“…On the other hand Sampaio, et al, [58] and [39] provide an interesting literature review of studies related to the analysis of efficiency in transport until 2011. However, few researchers have combined this work with the social value of the service provided or the users' perception of that value [13,36,54,67]. The effectiveness of each applied transport policy depends significantly on the level of agreement among stakeholders, making collaboration a prerequisite for success [57].…”

Health co-benefits in mortality avoidance from implementation of the mass rapid transit (MRT) system in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

“…The social benefits from using public transport were not quantified due to methodological challenges. Nevertheless, various researches have shown the health benefits of social capital in transport (31).…”