The Right Path
Monthly Newsletter
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Mission
The
International Professional Association for Transport & Health (IPATH) is a platform for cross-disciplinary and multi-sector professionals working at the intersection of transport and health. The aim of PATH is to share information, exchange ideas, and foster collaboration to improve health, quality of life and well-being in communities by advocating for the integration of health in the urban and transport agendas.
Vision
- To create an accepted professional discipline of transport and health
- To support and encourage research and best practices aimed at integrating health into the transport and urban planning and strategic decision-making processes
- To build a cohesive community of cross-disciplinary and multi-sector professionals
IPATH Membership including THSG goes from 1 January through December 31, renewed annually
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Dual Membership
As an IPATH member, you are automatically a member of the
Transport & Health Science Group (THSG) and access to a copy of Health on the Move 2. If you are not receiving emails from THSG or have not yet received a welcome letter as a new member, please contact
Liz Davies.
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Greetings Everyone,
As IPATH enters its third year of existence, a number of key initiatives are already underway. The most important being that we are now a member-based non-profit organization. Toward the end of 2018, the Board of Directors agreed to move the organization into non-profit status. The regulatory paperwork was completed early this year and is now filed.
Our theme for 2019 is Innovation. Part of the IPATH mission and vision is the integration of public health professionals as part of the team involved in the planning and design of transportation infrastructure projects. This strategy provides a competitive advantage not only from a market perspective, but also in terms of decision-making. A cross-disciplinary approach helps to eliminate miscommunication of priorities by partnering transportation and public health professionals so that innovative and multidimensional problem-solving is possible. The emphasis is on implementing practical solutions, through mutual communication, capacity building, and sustainable change/growth that influence the sociopolitical, environmental, and economic impacts of the transportation infrastructure within affected communities. To this end, a cultural shift in transportation infrastructure project planning and design can occur based on a systematic evidence-based research driven methodology. In this proposed scenario, public health professionals contribute the skill-set necessary to effectively evaluate the health impacts of a proposed facility by implementing techniques of qualitative and quantitative measurements that complement the accepted cost-benefit analysis of transportation accountability. It will be vital for both transportation and public health professionals to maintain their specific expertise and freely exchange information based on lessons learned so that causal links to planning and design issues lead to improvements in best practices, policy making and community livability.
Sometimes, innovation is more like a common sense perspective. The innovation comes when we push through the fear of doubt and assume the risk of ridicule and failure. All that's required is a willingness to take the first step.
Thank you to all of our members who have renewed their IPATH membership for 2019 and to all of our new members. We appreciate your support.
Warm Regards,
Al Almasy
President, Board of Directors
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Professor Andree Woodcock
Chair of Educational Ergonomics and Design
Future Transport and Cities Research Institute
Coventry University - England
Driving my research is the belief that applying systems-thinking and user-centred design principles drawn from ergonomics and design research can be applied to, and solve many of the societal grand challenges we face today. In this, the key for greater inclusion and recognition of the needs and contributions of all sectors of society is paramount. This requires the development and application of inclusive methods to understand these needs, in depth understanding of real people in their everyday context, and a willingness on the part of stakeholders (such as designers, municipalities and agencies) to use this information in the application and development of inclusive approaches, systems and products.
My PhD concerned an investigation of the use of ergonomics in automotive concept design acquired from Loughborough University while I was a Daphne Jackson Research Fellow. Most of my research has been located within design departments, looking at applying user-centred design to wicked problems in the areas of health, education, regeneration and transportation. Specifically; looking at the in car safety and security of female car occupants. To learn more about Andree click
HERE.
As an extension of Andree's work, the IPATH Board of Directors has unanimously approved the creation of a committee focused on women and transport. The goal is to create a network of interest in this area such as the health of women in transport employment, differences in injuries sustained by women using transport, or looking at the effects of transport on health and well-being of women. If you would like to be part of this NEW IPATH Committee, please send an email to
kwarsow@tphlink.com.
To get things started, please consider taking part in a travel survey to investigate the experiences of academic women available by clicking on the button below.This is a pilot survey being conducted by Andree and her team at Coventry University. The survey will take about 10 minutes to complete.
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Note that we have added a category of "Women and Transport" to the
ICTH 2019-Melbourne abstract submission portal. It is also anticipated that the IPATH Women & Transport Committee will host a formal meeting during ICTH.
Photo: Ipek N. Sener, PhD, with her ICTH 2016 poster entitled, "Understanding the role of equity in active transportation planning in the United States."
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IPATH Committee Launch: Lead by Example
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As IPATH moves into 2019, the Board of Directors (BOD) is happy to announce the launch of its member-based committees. Each committee will be led by a team of natural leaders who are inspired to share their knowledge and expertise. Committee members are encouraged to take risks when it comes to innovative problem-solving or trying out new ideas that do not conform with status-quo thinking. The goal is a fresh perspective as a result of cross-disciplinary/cross-sector collaboration and information sharing.
Individual committees will determine an annual action plan and long-term strategic plan to ensure continued progress toward proposed deliverables, including but not limited to: research/project initiatives, policy position papers, conference presentations, workshops, webinars, consulting services, educational outreach activities and making recommendations to the IPATH BOD to promote organic growth of the association.
The IPATH BOD will review and approve each proposed committee prior to offering it to the general membership. Committees will abide by the IPATH by-laws. Once the committee has been approved, a web page will be dedicated on the IPATH website including the formal name of the committee, description and contact information of the team leaders. Below is a list of approved and pending IPATH committee topic areas:
Do you have an idea for an IPATH committee? Are you interested in serving on a committee or as a committee team leader? If so, email Karyn at
kwarsow@tphlink.com. Let's start creating!
*You must be an active IPATH member to participate in committee activities.
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Transport & Health Performance Metric Guidebook (THMPG) UPDATE
On Wednesday, 20 February, the THPMG team had their first conference call since the teams were finalized in January 2019. Captains and co-captains of each chapter team emerged as natural leaders with little to no intervention from the guidebook editors. These leaders kicked off the conference call by describing their strategy and challenges to organizing the work of a global team. The result has been a creative mechanism of communication and collaboration based on team preferences. No one team is using the same process.
While over half of the teams are moving forward productively with a high level of enthusiasm, other teams have yet to get organized.This is often the reality of any real-world project. The focus moving forward will be to assign a captain and co-captain to these teams and if necessary recruit additional authors.
Overall, it appears as if the first general bi-monthly team conference call helped the authors share lessons learned, express their concerns and clarify the direction of the project. The discussion was informative and productive. We are now in the process of re-evaluating and correcting those things that aren't working quite right. It is anticipated that the teams will have a rough draft of their chapters completed in April.
Note that the THPMG project will be housed under the IPATH Research Initiatives Committee to ensure a planned methodology and continuous process improvement strategy. To keep up to date on the progress of this exciting project, visit the
Transport & Health Performance Metric Guidebook web page. If you're interested in becoming a peer-reviewer, email
Karyn Warsow to be added to a chapter team.
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Along the Journey to Change
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All to often we assume that certain people are only doing their job. Other times we
expect that these same people will take on a greater share of the responsibility based on their position in an organization. And these people just keep going without
public gratitude or acknowledgement. Today is different. IPATH and ICTH would like to 'Thank' Shawn Leight and Jeff Lindley for their endless commitment and leadership to integrating health as part of the ITE culture and for supporting all of our work and the work of other organizations to promote a transport and health agenda. Gentlemen, you help make our work so much easier as a supportive partner and friend.Thank You.
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VP/COO, CBB Transportation Engineers + Planners
Past President, Institute of Transportation Engineers
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A
ssociate Executive Director
Chief Technical Officer
Institute of Transportation Engineers
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New Report From The League of American Bicyclists Shows A National Public Health Crisis
"In 1958, Walt Disney imagined the future of transit was a “Magic Highway” where technology and infrastructure combined for fast, uncongested, sedentary travel by car. In 2019, with the rates of chronic diseases like obesity and diabetes rising and roads get deadlier for pedestrians and cyclists, the real solutions for better infrastructure are not found in 1950s futurism – they are found in the Bicycle Friendly Communities and States where more people are biking and walking, and fewer bicyclists and pedestrians are dying.
Congress first authorized federal funding to improve infrastructure projects intended for bicyclists and pedestrians in 1991. In 25 years, the United States has made significant investments in infrastructure, but a review of data and official documents by the League of American Bicyclists for Bicycling & Walking in the United States:
2018 Benchmarking Report shows that more federal and state leadership is needed to make improvements in infrastructure. While forward-thinking advocates and city leaders have made progress for bicyclist and pedestrian safety at the local level, further leadership at the federal and state level is necessary to coordinate the design and implementation of cohesive, connected, and safe environments for bicycling and walking in America.
Produced with support from groups such as AARP and Toole Design Group, the 2018 Benchmarking Report demonstrates the urgency to create bikeable and walkable communities to not only save lives on the roadway, but also encourage healthy living options. Just 30 minutes a day, 5 days a week, of moderate to vigorous physical activity for adults can help prevent eight types of cancer, heart disease, stroke, high blood pressure, type 2 diabetes, and depression. Even small amounts of physical activity each day have health benefits. Building Bicycle Friendly Communities and ones that enable even short trips to work, school, or the doctor’s office encourage healthier outcomes for everyone.
The 2018 Benchmarking Report contains state and city-level data charting the increases and declines in bicyclist and pedestrian safety, federal funding for active transportation infrastructure, policies and plans for biking and walking, and much more. A few noteworthy findings include:
- Mississippi was the deadliest state for bicyclists with the highest average fatality rate per 10k bicycle commuters from 2012-2016. Mississippi also had the lowest percent of commuters biking to work in 2016 at .1 percent of the population.
- Cities where the rate of biking to work is highest, like Portland, Oregon, and Washington, DC, have the lowest rate of bicyclist fatalities.
- 71 percent of bicyclist deaths occurred in an urban area, with 61 percent occurring on principal or minor arterial roadways, which only make up 10 percent of the national roadway system.
- 39 percent of biking trips and 35 percent of walking trips in 2017 were for social and/or recreational purposes.
- 20 percent of biking trips in 2017 were to earn a living.
- Women are underrepresented among people who bike to work, but there have been modest participation increases in recent years.
- For people with an income below $25,000 per year, biking in an increasingly common method for taking trips.
The nearly 400-page 2018 Benchmarking Report contains graphs, maps, and tables touching nearly every topic related to bicycling and walking in the United States. Please contact communications@bikeleague.org to ask about specific cities or states, speak to an expert, or learn more about how your state and community can become more bicycle friendly."
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WHO – 10 Facts on Global Road Safety 2018
'The World Health Organization (WHO) has published the 10 key facts on global road safety as derived from the recent Global health estimates and the
Global status report on road safety, published in 2018. The first fact is that “Road traffic injuries are a global public health problem“. To reduce the number of road traffic deaths and injuries, a holistic framework such as the Safe System Approach needs to be adopted to ensure a safe transport system for all road users.'
About 1.3 million people die on the world's roads and 20 - 50 million are injured every year. Road traffic crashes are a major cause of death among all age groups and the leading cause of death for children and young adults aged 5–29 years.
The risk of dying in a road traffic crash is more than 3 times higher in low-income countries than in high-income countries. This fact file presents data from WHO's most recent
Global health estimates and the
Global status report on road safety. Millions of lives can be saved and injuries prevented with well-enforced road safety laws on speeding, drinking and driving, and use of seat belts, child restraints and motorcycle helmets. Road design, improved vehicle standards and better emergency care also save many lives.'
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Tell Congress: Pass a binding, federal Complete Streets policy
"Simply walking down the street shouldn't cost you your life, but for 49,340 people over the last decade, it did. A lack of action to save the most vulnerable lives on our streets means this problem isn’t getting better.
Since the last iteration of the report two years ago, four out of five states and major metro areas have gotten more dangerous for people walking. 2016 and 2017 were the most deadly years for pedestrians in nearly three decades. And states keep setting “goals” for pedestrian fatalities that allow for more carnage, not less. It’s time for the federal government to lead." Click
HERE for more information.
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FREE Webinars
Sharing the Road Cycling@Tea-time: interactions between cyclists and other road users, 28 February, 17:15 – 19:00 GMT
Call For Papers
Special Issue in the Elsevier Journal of Transportation Business and Management, Making Equity Work. Papers of interest include progressive transport policies from a governance, social impact, management and/or financing. Click
HERE for the full submission description.
Submission opens: 15 March 2019
Submission of full Papers for the Themed Volume: July 31 2019
Deadline revisions: November 2019
Publication: January 2020
Because of technical issues in December 2018 and many people in S America being on holiday in January, we have responded to many requests and have extended the deadline to 28 February 2019. Manuscripts relevant to this topic can also be submitted after that for regular issues of the journal.
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Scientific Journal Articles, Articles of Interest & Reports
Building the Local Capacity of the National Walking Movement: Outcomes from the First Two Years of the Walking College Click
HERE
SMCI
Shared Mobility City Index A practical tool to evaluate cities; functional, political, social and environmental considerations to help assess cities on suitability for shared mobility services
Conferences
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International Conference on Transport & Health
Smart Cities. Disruptive Mobility. Healthy People.
Pullman Melbourne on the Park
Melbourne, Australia
4-8 November 2019
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Transportation Policy Director - This role will be responsible for developing and implementing SPUR's transportation policy across San Francisco, San Jose, Oakland and the Bay Area.
Postdoctoral Associate – Transportation Engineering Specialty, Fresno State Transportation Institute, Lyles College of Engineering
Location: Arizona State University – Tempe Campus
- Policy & Communication Associate
- Policy Associate
- Director of Smart Cities
- Communication Intern (Paid)
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Thank you for taking the time to read through The Right Path Newsletter! If you have ideas to improve the newsletter or would like to contribute, please email us at
kwarsow@tphlink.com
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