Budget: $600,000
Project dates: January 2024 – December 2029
This grant supports a project by RMIT’s Centre for Urban Research that will link multi-disciplinary research evidence on health and place to transform the development of urban planning that influences chronic ill health. The research team will evaluate existing infrastructure, cycling behaviour and area-based health outcomes to support healthy city design using the Australian Urban Observatory’s digital liveability platform.
Planners and governments are struggling to support physically active communities, address the health impacts of climate change, support zero emissions and translate research evidence into healthy city planning. Cycling is an affordable, pollution-free, physically active transport mode that can prevent chronic ill health with the potential to replace short to medium-distance car trips that support local living.
Current levels of cycling are impeded by a lack of safe cycling infrastructure, built and natural environment factors, traffic speeds and volumes and socio-cultural factors. More knowledge is needed on the relationship between cycling behaviour and infrastructure that incentivises cycling for transport. Cycling is an undervalued transport mode critical for net-zero policy ambition with public health benefits.
With this funding, the research team aim to address evidence and policy gaps by developing easy-to-use tools and research evidence that connects the presence of cycling infrastructure to cycling behaviour and health outcomes.
This project is a significant step towards providing evidence for urban planners, councils, and governments to adopt a public health perspective in city development.