Publication Date
Spring 2025
Presentation Length
15 minutes
College
College of Liberal Arts & Social Sciences
Department
Political Science, Department of
Student Level
Undergraduate
SPARK Category
Research
Faculty Advisor
Nathan Griffith
WELL Core Type
Environmental Wellness
Presentation Type
Talk/Oral
Summary
A simple definition of a city is an organizational unit that consists of a dense population within a specific area. This unit can carry a variety of goods and services, complete with housing, businesses, places of leisure and community. A city provides residents with all three of the aspects to live, work, and play within a set distance. How people get around this area is a vital question considering the large number of people in a relatively small zone. For many metropolitan areas a personal car is how movement between city spaces is carried out, however this can cause air pollution and massive traffic problems. Cities and states spend billions of dollars trying to fix congestion problems for car dependent systems, and individual consumers spend large sums for maintenance and for the vehicles themselves. Further, car dependent societies disrupt physical activity and help promote sedentary lifestyles, increasing health risks (Tran, 2016). Other systems of transportation that can be more helpful and more financially friendly are biking and using a public transportation system. Both of those ways of movement are more friendly for the environment and help to transport large numbers of people by taking up less space than a traditional car. By far the most inexpensive and healthy way to travel about a city is by walking. This requires nothing extra except for a pair of shoes, and two feet can carry a person about any direction or distance. Walking is especially helpful in a denser area like a city, where cars are not the most efficient way of getting from place to place. However, many cities are not built with the mode of walking in mind, car superiority prevents funding from being spent on sidewalks and pedestrian safety modules. By prioritizing building walkable cities, this will increase the quality of life within a household.
Recommended Citation
Barnett, Carter J., "Walking on Sunshine: Walkable Cities Affect on the Health and Well-being of a Population" (2025). SPARK Symposium Presentations. 601.
https://repository.belmont.edu/spark_presentations/601
Included in
Environmental Health and Protection Commons, Models and Methods Commons, Urban Studies and Planning Commons
