Walking, as a moderate and routine form of physical activity embedded in daily life, holds immense potential for reducing sedentarism and improving public health, particularly in urban settings where short motorised trips are common. Empirical data drawn from regional health and mobility surveys reveals that replacing motorised journeys of five minutes or less with walking could significantly reduce mortality rates—with over 100 preventable deaths in men and around 80 in women annually—while generating economic savings exceeding 200 million euros. These estimates highlight walking not merely as a personal habit but as a powerful public health intervention with measurable collective benefits. Further analysis demonstrates that individuals who walk or use public transport exhibit a lower prevalence of overweight and obesity, especially among men, compared to those relying exclusively on cars or motorbikes. Additionally, environmental conditions such as neighbourhood motorisation directly impact walking frequency, even after adjusting for other contextual variables. High motorisation levels correlate negatively with pedestrian activity, affirming that urban design and traffic density can either inhibit or promote healthy behaviours. Walking also presents gender-specific patterns, indicating the necessity for targeted interventions that address inequities in mobility access and safety perceptions. Beyond health, walking acts as a catalyst for reclaiming public space, fostering social cohesion, and encouraging sustainable mobility. By identifying both vulnerable population groups and modifiable environmental elements, walking emerges as a strategic axis for urban and health policies, capable of transforming individual routines into population-wide benefits.
Olabarría, M. (2013) Walking for transportation: estudio de los factores individuales y contextuales que influyen en el caminar como medio de transporte y de sus implicaciones en salud. PhD thesis. Universitat Pompeu Fabra, Spain.
