Research on the Difference Between Recreational Walking and Transport Walking Among the Elderly in Mega Cities With Different Density Zones: The Case of Guangzhou City

Abstract

Walking is the easiest method of physical activity for older people, and current research has demonstrated that the built environment is differently associated with recreational and transport walking. This study modelled the environmental characteristics of three different building density zones in Guangzhou city at low, medium, and high densities, and examined the differences in walking among older people in the three zones. The International Physical Activity Questionnaire (IPAQ) was used to investigate the recreational and transport walking time of older people aged 65 years and above for the past week, for a total of three density zones (N = 597) and was analysed as a dependent variable. Geographic Information Systems (GIS) was used to identify 300, 500, 800, and 1,000 m buffers and to assess differences between recreational and transport walking in terms of the built environment [e.g., land-use mix, street connectivity, Normalised Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) data]. The data were processed and validated using the SPSS software to calculate Pearson's correlation models and stepwise regression models between recreation and transit walking and the built environment. The results found that land use mix and NDVI were positively correlated with transport walking in low-density areas and that transport walking was negatively correlated with roadway mediated centrality (BtE) and Point-of-Interest (PoI) density. Moreover, recreational walking in medium density areas was negatively correlated with self-rated health, road intersection density, and PoI density while positively correlated with educational attainment, population density, land use mix, street connectivity, PoIs density, and NDVI. Transport walking was negatively correlated with land-use mix, number of road crossings while positively correlated with commercial PoI density. Street connectivity, road intersection density, DNVI, and recreational walking in high-density areas showed negative correlations. Moreover, the built environment of older people in Guangzhou differed between recreational and transport walking at different densities. The richness of PoIs has different effects on different types of walking.

Analysis of Urban Built Environment Impacts on Outdoor Physical Activities—A Case Study in China

“…On one hand, analysis of the relationships between built environment characteristics and other outdoor physical activities, such as cycling, dancing, etc., can be followed using the same approach. In addition, the detailed analysis can be performed regarding the difference between recreational walking and transport walking ( 71 ). On the other hand, incorporating social factors, and the subjects' demographic information and health-related data may predict citizens' preferences in a certain region and therefore improve the neighboring facilities to promote physical activities, design a flexible and adaptive urban environment that can fit different purposes and help in designing a more customized urban environments for different users.…”

Correlation Between Neighborhood Built Environment and Leisure Walking Time Around a Riverside Park

“…The relationship between the built environment and walking behavior varies depending on the purpose of walking. Transport walking is motivated by walking to a destination, such as commuting to work, while leisure walking involves walking to places such as a park for exercise or leisure purposes (Zang et al, 2021). Since this analysis examined the correlation between access to parks and walking behavior, we mainly focused on leisure walking.…”

Exploring the Relationship Between Neighborhood-Built Environment and Elderly Health: A Research Based on Heterogeneity of Age and Gender Groups in Beijing

“…By considering the Uncertain Geographic Context Problem, we created five scales of buffers, including the administrative boundary of the neighborhood, 300, 500, 800, and 1,000 m buffers ( 10 , 49 ). The selection was based on the concept of the “living circle” in the “Code for Planning and Design on Urban residential Areas” in China, combined with the walking speed of the elderly (0.8 m/s) ( 50 ).…”