Built environment and cycling for transport in Europe

In a cross-sectional study just published in the journal Health & Place with Lieze Mertens from Ghent University as first author, we explored which observed built environmental factors were associated with cycling for transport among adults in five urban regions across Europe. This study was part of the SPOTLIGHT (sustainable prevention of obesity through integrated strategies) project, that The build environment was observed with a virtual neighbourhood audit tool using Google street view, that was specifically developed for this study. We further explored if the association of build
environment characteristics with cycling for transport depended on such factors as age, gender, socio-economic status and country/urban region. The results showed that people living in neighbourhoods with a preponderance of speed limits below 30 km/h, many bicycle lanes, with less traffic calming devices, and more trees; but also with more litter and parked cars on the road were more likely to cycle for transport than people living in areas with lower prevalence of these factors. The results suggest that reducing speed limits for motorized vehicles and the provision of more bicycle lanes may help to facilitate cycling for transport in urban regions across Europe. Hardly any evidence was found that the associations were different between men and women, or according to age or socio-economic status.