Background Walking distance is an important concept in the fields of transportation and public health. A distance of 0.25 miles is often used as an acceptable walking distance in U.S. research studies. Overall, research on the distance and duration of walking trips for different purposes and across different population groups remains limited. Purpose This study examines the prevalence of walking and distances and durations of walking trips for different purposes among U.S. residents. Methods The distances and durations of walking trips for different purposes across population groups were compared using nationally representative data from the 2009 National Household Travel Survey (NHTS). Distance decay functions were used to summarize the distribution of walking distances and durations for different purposes and population subgroups. Data were analyzed in 2011. Results Sixteen percent of respondents had at least one daily walking trip. The mean and median values for walking distance were 0.7 and 0.5 miles, respectively. For walking duration, the mean and median values were 14.9 and 10 minutes. About 65% of walking trips were more than 0.25 miles, and about 18% of walking trips were more than 1 mile. Large variations were found among various purposes for both distance and duration. The distances and durations of walking for recreation were substantially longer than those for other purposes. People with lower versus higher household income walked longer distances for work but shorter distances for recreation. Conclusions Only a small fraction of respondents walk, but trips longer than 0.25 miles are common. There is substantial variability in the distance and duration of walking trips by purpose and population subgroups. These differences have implications for developing strategies to increase physical activity through walking.

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Context: Depression among older adults (≥age 60) is a problem that could be exacerbated by global trends in urbanization and population aging. The study purpose was to assess whether urban, relative to rural, residence is associated with depression among older adults and whether associations differ in countries with developed versus developing economies.Context: Depression among older adults (aged 60 years or older) is a problem that could be exacerbated by global trends in urbanization and population aging. The study purpose was to assess whether urban, relative to rural, residence is associated with depression among older adults and whether associations differ in countries with developed versus developing economies. Evidence acquisition:In 2017, the authors identified and extracted information from comparative studies of urban-rural depression prevalence among older adults. Studies were identified in PubMed, PsychINFO, and Web of Science and limited to English language articles published after 1985. Eighteen studies met inclusion criteria. Random effects meta-analysis was conducted to produce weighted pooled ORs estimating the association between urban-rural residence and depression for all study participants (N=31,598) and sub-analyses were conducted for developed (n=12,728) and developing (n=18,870) countries.Evidence synthesis: Depression prevalence was significantly higher among urban residents in ten studies and significantly higher among rural residents in three studies (all three conducted in China). Associations between urban-rural residence and depression generally remained significant after adjusting for covariates. In developed countries, the odds of depression were significantly higher among urban than rural residents (pooled OR=1.44, 95% CI=1.10, 1.88).However, in developing countries, this association was not observed (pooled OR=0.91, 95% CI=0.46, 1.77). Conclusions:Converging trends of urbanization and population aging could increase the global burden of depression among older adults. The pathways through which urban-rural residence influences depression risk among older adults might differ by country context. Future research should focus on measuring variation in these contexts. 3CONTEXT Human longevity is increasing, and the demographic composition of societies is aging. Between 2015 and 2050, global life expectancy at birth is projected to increase from 70 to 77 years. 1 By 2050, the proportion of the world's population aged more than 60 years is projected to double and the proportion aged more than 80 years is projected to triple. 2,3 In Europe, the proportion of the population aged more than 60 years is expected to increase from 24% to 34% between 2015 and 2050. Increasing trends are also expected in Latin America (from 11% to 26%), North America (from 21% to 28%), and Asia (from 12% to 25%). 3 These increases in longevity pose challenges for policymakers as they are forced to address the implications of population aging within the context of other societal changes. As Beard and Bloom descr...

Environmental effects on walking behavior have received attention in recent years because of the potential for policy interventions to increase population levels of walking. Most epidemiologic studies describe associations of walking behavior with environmental features. These analyses ignore the dynamic processes that shape walking behaviors. A spatial agent-based model (ABM) was developed to simulate peoples’ walking behaviors within a city. Each individual was assigned properties such as age, SES, walking ability, attitude toward walking and a home location. Individuals perform different activities on a regular basis such as traveling for work, for shopping, and for recreation. Whether an individual walks and the amount she or he walks is a function distance to different activities and her or his walking ability and attitude toward walking. An individual’s attitude toward walking evolves over time as a function of past experiences, walking of others along the walking route, limits on distances walked per day, and attitudes toward walking of the other individuals within her/his social network. The model was calibrated and used to examine the contributions of land use and safety to socioeconomic differences in walking. With further refinement and validation, ABMs may help to better understand the determinants of walking and identify the most promising interventions to increase walking.

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