Assessing Potential of Bike Share Networks and Active Transportation to Improve Urban Mobility, Physical Activity and Public Health Outcomes in South Carolina

Description: There is need for evidence-based research about how, when, where, and why people undertake active travel, like bicycling and walking, and about how the built environment and infrastructure may or may not accommodate active travel. As stated in the National Physical Activity Plan, transportation and public health entities should collaborate to “improve and expand existing data collection sources to assess active transportation patterns and trends that include local-area data.” Charleston, South Carolina has the conditions necessary to promote active travel, such as supportive stakeholders and a walkable built environment, as well as the tools to study the conditions under which active travel may thrive. This research will conduct a case study on active travel in Charleston, focusing on issues such as route conditions and the use of bike share programs to better understand how Charleston’s built environment is meeting the health, physical activity, and transportation needs of the community. Intellectual Merit: Qualitative, quantitative, and geospatial methods will be used to evaluate active transportation, physical activity, and health outcomes in Charleston, South Carolina. Broader Impacts: Research results will be beneficial to communities which are undertaking active transportation and bike share initiatives to improve mobility, reduce congestion, promote sustainability, increase levels of physical activity, and bring about desirable public health outcomes. Technology Transfer: The research team will engage local officials, decision makers, and community stakeholders by communicating its data analysis and results, for example through infographics, formal meetings, and a guidebook. Findings will also be published and presented in national engineering and city planning forums, and will be disseminated to municipalities and other stakeholders via strategic technology transfer channels.