WHO Tool Calculates Health Savings of Bicycle & Pedestrian Infrastructure

 
bicycling walking infrastructure benefits

As I just wrote, one should really be thankful for bicyclists when they see them on the street, and for the minuscule amount of funding bicycle and pedestrian infrastructure gets. No matter if you bicycle or not, these bicyclists and the infrastructure that supports them is good for societal/public health. Now, a new tool from the World Health Organization (WHO) helps you to calculate those savings.

“The WHO, which is on a mission to rein in the worldwide epidemic of traffic deaths and injuries, has developed a tool that measures the health impacts of bike and pedestrian infrastructure projects, calculating cost-benefit analyses as well as the economic value of reduced mortality,” Streetsblog Capitol Hill writes.

“Of course you need to do a little advance preparation before using the tool. You’ll need to have a fair amount of information about local travel habits at your disposal. (For example, you’ll be prompted to estimate the percentage of people who currently take walking trips and the average length of the trip.) But it’s the type of info your local metro planning agency should have publicly available. Worst case scenario, you have to perform a survey.”

Check out the tool and see what kind of savings you and your community can or do gain from bicycle and/or pedestrian infrastructure.

Image: protected and green-colored bicycle lane in Vancouver, by Paul Krueger (CC BY 2.0 license)

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