Walking is a healthy mode of transport, offering one of the most fruitful areas for collaboration between health and transport professionals for a number of reasons. Firstly, the research evidence on the health benefits of physical activity (including walking) is strong, notably in reducing the public health burden of coronary heart disease and obesity. Secondly, walking has specific benefits to health, and offers great potential to improve public health due to the ease with which it can be integrated into people's daily lives. Thirdly, the health promotion sector has valuable skills and experience to offer in the promotion of walking, which can make for fruitful collaborations. Finally, physical activity and public health professionals are increasingly focusing on environmental determinants of behaviour, leading them to embrace other disciplines including transport planning, town planning, environmental health and, architecture. Health professionals are powerful allies for the transport professional aiming to promote walking, and both need to work together to build on the overwhelming evidence of the benefits of our most natural mode of transport. (A)
Abstract