It’s obvious. Because taking a nice walk rather than getting straight in your car after a huge meal at a fancy restaurant always feels so good.
The same can be said about transit. Walking to and from the bus or train will always leave people more invigorated than taking a few steps into a car.
And that healthy choice isn’t just a short-term feeling. Taking transit can actually help people lose weight. This has been stated many times over the years in the media. But it can’t hurt to say it again, especially since a new, wide-ranging study by the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and Georgia Tech attaches solid numbers to what seems like common sense.
By comparing and analyzing U.S. Census data from 227 counties in 2001 and 2009, the researchers found that “a single percentage-point increase in mass transit ridership is associated with a 0.473 percentage-point lower obesity rate.”
The longitudinal study was able to control for all kinds of factors, such as weather, physical geography, economic and lifestyle factors, household income, health care coverage, and public transit funding.
“The results indicate that when more people opt to use public transit, the county-level obesity rate tends to drop, though it does not necessarily imply that any one particular person is less likely to be obese if they ride transit frequently,” said Sheldon H. Jacobson, a co-author and professor at Illinois, to Science Daily.
He noted how the next round of research, based on these foundational studies, could take factors like ride-hailing apps Uber and Lyft, bikeshare, and scooters into account.
For more on the important connections between health and transportation, see our Health Landing Page. And go here for more information from us on the obesity/transit link specifically.
Photo by Abe Landes for Mobility Lab