#urbansprawl

Originally posted by Rodrigo Pantoja-Calderon in Spanish at https://unlugar.org.mx/la-forma-urbana-y-su-repercusion-en-la-salud/#more-3335 on 05/05/2014

It is well known that urban sprawl leads to traffic congestion, pollution, isolation, social inequality, land use speculation, and many other effects. However, the relationship between health and the built environment is rarely discussed. In other words, poorly planned cities that encourage urban sprawl promote unhealthy habits among their inhabitants.

Modern cities - especially suburbs - are not designed to encourage physical activity. On the contrary, they encourage dependence on the car. Most cities in the 19th and 20th centuries were walkable, characterized by compact urban environments with mixed-use developments that included commerce, housing, workplaces, and recreational spaces. However, these urban models changed as a result of poor urban planning combined with high population density, overcrowding, and poor sanitation. As a result, the cities of the 19th century became polluted, overcrowded places with few parks and limited open spaces.

With this new reality, the automobile industry took advantage of the situation and encouraged the development of dispersed cities. Residential areas were separated from industrial zones to provide cleaner, more private, and serene living environments.

The Consequences of Urban Sprawl

These urban and social transformations have led to an urban model similar to the one we are experiencing today: mass (sub-) urbanization, decentralization of historic centers, and the deterioration of walkability in cities. In addition to the common criticisms of this urban model - such as unnecessary land consumption, poor air quality, car dependency, depletion of natural resources, and pollution - it has also contributed to a decline in public health.

According to studies by health researchers in developed countries such as the United States and Sweden, the vast majority of adults do not meet the minimum criteria for physical activity. Various sources suggest that each person should get at least 150 minutes of physical activity per week. [1].

Commuting long distances for work, education, and entertainment encourages car dependency and leads to sedentary lifestyles. Cities used to encourage physical activity through walkability and the prevalence of manual labor. Today, people come home exhausted from sitting in traffic, only to repeat the cycle the next day. This lack of physical activity results in wasted time and energy, ultimately leading to lethargy.

Health Risks of Sedentary Lifestyles

Today's sedentary lifestyles put most adults at risk, according to a report on physical activity recommendations published by the Department of Health and Human Services in Washington. Similarly, Dr. James F. Sallis and other researchers argue in the Role of Built Environments in Physical Activity, Obesity, and Cardiovascular Disease that automation and computerization have significantly reduced physical activity in the workplace and at home.

The main diseases associated with physical inactivity include diabetes, obesity, cancer, osteoporosis, and mental disorders. People living in large cities now have higher rates of obesity, high blood pressure, and high blood sugar than people living in rural areas because most urban environments are not conducive to physical activity.

In the past, individuals did not need to set aside time for physical activity. Daily activities were physically demanding enough to increase heart rate, burn calories, raise body temperature, induce sweating (thus eliminating toxins), increase oxygen levels, and trigger the production of endorphins and other biochemical reactions. Nowadays, people need to make a conscious effort to plan physical activity to reap these benefits.

For this reason, it is important to promote walkability in cities and provide parks, sidewalks, and trails near residential areas. A study published in the American Journal of Public Health [2] showed that people with access to public parks near their homes were almost twice as likely to meet the Department of Health and Human Services recommendations for physical activity than those without nearby recreational facilities. Public parks are generally accessible to populations at higher risk of physical inactivity and are available at low cost. Their role is strategic in helping to prevent disease through physical and recreational activity.

Greenways and corridors can also serve as spaces for recreation, physical activity, and active transport. They tend to be used more if they are aesthetically pleasing, well-lit, and surrounded by public spaces than if they are unclean and noisy. The presence of parks, paths, and corridors within short walking distances further increases the likelihood of engaging in health-promoting activities. A study in the Official Journal of the American Academy of Pediatrics (Pediatrics) [3] found that neighborhoods with more recreational facilities had lower rates of childhood obesity.

Similarly, Lawrence D. Frank's book Health and Community Design [4] highlights how the built environment can promote physical activity and health through various studies that examine the relationship between urban form and public health. The book discusses factors that influence physical activity in cities and modes of transport.

The Need for Urban Reform

Current urban models and land use strategies need to be adapted to counteract urban sprawl and sedentary lifestyles through activities such as walking and exercise. According to Frank, the benefits of walking and cycling as modes of transport include environmental protection and enhancement, healthier lifestyles, promotion of a sense of community, economic diversity, convenient and efficient transport, energy conservation, and economic viability.

In 2004, the United States Department of Transportation reported that between 1977 and 1995, the number of people walking to work decreased by 32 percent. These figures have continued to rise, highlighting the opportunity to create better pedestrian routes that encourage greater urban proximity and healthier habits. When neighborhoods have sidewalks, well-lit streets, and pedestrian safety from traffic, residents walk more and engage in more physical activity [5].

Dense urban areas tend to have good connectivity, pedestrian infrastructure, and accessible public transport. Problems arise when urban sprawl fragments the city, reducing proximity to destinations and leaving infrastructure in place - meaning a lack of parks and essential services.

A 'non-walkable' environment does not promote health, mixed-use development, connectivity, or economic viability. Low-income communities are often disadvantaged by greater isolation, with limited access to parks, recreational facilities, aesthetically pleasing environments, and traffic safety. There is a growing awareness of the need to transform the built environment to promote health and equity.

Solutions for a Healthier Urban Future

The good news is that the design, quality, and layout of parks, trails, green corridors, and cities can be influenced by public policy (a top-down approach) or citizen activism (a bottom-up approach). Implementing these changes requires urban transformation and policy adaptation.

These interventions require long-term interdisciplinary collaboration involving research teams and community initiatives. The involvement of a wide range of professionals and social sectors will help to develop holistic solutions. This requires the participation of architects, urban planners, landscape architects, geographers, transport representatives, public space authorities, sociologists, doctors, and the wider community.

Rodrigo Pantoja-Calderón, MLArch, BArch.

References.

[1] Hgstromer Mtroiano RP, Sjostrom M, Berrigan D. Levels and patterns of objectivity assessed physical activity: a comparison between Sweden and the United States. Am J Epidemio, 2010; 171:1055-1064.

[2] Brownson RC, Baker EA, Housemann RA, Brenna LK, Bacak SJ. Environmental and policy determinants of physical activity in the United Stated. Am J Public health 2001; 91:1995-2003

[3] Gordon-Larsen P, Nelson MC, Page P. Pokin BM. Inequality in the built environment underlies key health disparities in physical activity obesity. Pediatrics. 2006; 117:417-424

[4] Frank, Lawrence D. Health and Community Design: The Impact of The Built Environment On Physical Activity. Island Press, 2003.

In three months, I’ll be 32. It’s hard to believe. Three decades of watching this country transform, and not in ways that fill me with pride. Born in the early '90s, I grew up in a Britain that still felt connected to its roots. There were fewer people, fewer houses crammed into every square foot of available land, fewer cars choking the roads. The world didn’t feel so suffocated by tarmac and concrete back then.  

Now? It feels like we’ve traded something irreplaceable for convenience and consumption. Trees are chopped down to make way for cookie-cutter housing estates. Natural wetlands, once teeming with life, are drained and paved over to build car parks and office blocks. We’re manufacturing spaces for people to exist, but we’ve forgotten how to let them *live.*  

I’ve been watching this decline since the early 2000s, but it feels like it’s accelerated with each passing year. There’s an eerie sameness creeping across the country. Once-diverse landscapes are homogenised into sprawling suburbs and soulless developments. The unique charm of towns and villages is buried under identikit high streets, filled with the same chain stores and fast-food outlets.  

Where are the trees? The untouched fields? The rivers meandering through their ancient courses? They’re being replaced by roundabouts, dual carriageways, and miles of grey nothingness. And with them goes the soul of the land, the deep, unspoken connection to something older and wilder than ourselves.  

My heart breaks to see it. It breaks to know that what I loved about this country is vanishing, and that those who come after me will never experience it the way I did. They won’t remember what it felt like to walk through a forest untouched by urban sprawl or to stumble upon a quiet wetland brimming with life.  

I wonder: when did we decide that *more* was always better? More houses, more cars, more people, more *stuff.* It’s not better. It’s suffocating. The balance is gone, and I fear it won’t return.  

As I approach 32, I can’t help but feel a growing urgency. We have to stop this rot before it’s too late. We need to reclaim the wild spaces, preserve what remains, and plant new roots—not just trees, but values. Values that prioritise nature, history, and the things that truly nourish the human spirit.