Watch your step, Louisville!, by Kirk Kandle (www.LouisvilleKY.com)
Last month I learned that my hometown, Louisville, Ky, is at the bottom of the American Fitness Index – number 49 among 50 cities studied. And a few days later I found that Louisville is among the most dangerous midwestern cities for pedestrians, according to the Transportation for America study “Dangerous By Design.”
I’m disappointed, but not surprised. I’m angry as hell. I’m embarrassed. I hope you are, too.
Monday, June 06, 2011
But there's fast "food" on every corner.
It applies to New Albany, too.
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Dan Chandler tried to post this a couple days ago, but it did not appear.
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I followed the links to the CDC's website for its ACES - Active Community Environments program.
http://www.cdc.gov/physicalactivity/professionals/environment/aces.html
Here we have the federal government unambigiously telling city councils and school boards that, based on scientific research, public health depends on them.
From the website:
ACES — Active Community Environments
CDC's Active Community Environments Initiative (ACES) promotes walking, bicycling, and the development of accessible recreation facilities. It was developed in response to data from a variety of disciplines, including public health, urban design, and transportation planning. These data suggest characteristics of our communities such as proximity of facilities, street design, density of housing, availability of public transit and of pedestrian and bicycle facilities play a significant role in promoting or discouraging physical activity.
This initiative encourages environmental and policy interventions that will affect increased levels of physical activity and improved public health. The goals are to
• encourage the development of pedestrian and bicycle friendly environments.
• promote active forms of transportation like walking and bicycling.
•disseminate information related to Active Community Environments.
Current activities to promote the goals of the Active Community Environments Initiative include
• promoting physical activity through trails.
• development of the Kids Walk-to-School program to promote walking and bicycling to school.
• collaboration with public and private agencies to promote National and International Walk-to-School Day.
• development of the Active Community Environments guidebook for public health practitioners to use to partner with transportation and city planning organizations to promote walking, bicycling, and close to home recreation facilities.
• a partnership with the National Park Services Rivers, Trails, and Conservation Assistance Program to promote the development and use of close-to-home parks and recreational facilities.
• collaboration on an Atlanta-based study to review the relationships of land use, transportation, air quality, and physical activity.
• collaboration with the Environmental Protection Agency on a national survey to study attitudes of the American public toward the environment, walking, and bicycling.
Lots of good information. Should we be surprised that the metro area with one of the top pedestrian death rates and longest commute times also leads the nation in physical inactivity and heart disease? Inaction from our local governments reduces quality of life and cost lives.
Now, which members of our city council and school board are talking about this?
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