The effectiveness of community-based cycling promotion: findings from the Cycling Connecting Communitiesproject in Sydney, Australia

International Journal of Behavioral Nutrition and Physical Activity

Research

Carolyn New¹  Li Ming Wen¹  Chris E Rissel²  Jan Garrard³  Adrian E Bauman⁴  Dafna Merom⁴ 

[1] Health Promotion Service, Sydney South West Area Health Service, Liverpool Hospital, Hugh Jardine Building, Eastern Campus, Locked Mail Bag 7017, 1871, Liverpool, BC, Australia;Health Promotion Service, Sydney South West Area Health Service, Liverpool Hospital, Hugh Jardine Building, Eastern Campus, Locked Mail Bag 7017, 1871, Liverpool, BC, Australia;Sydney Medical School, The University of Sydney, K25 - Medical Foundation Building, 2006, NSW, Australia;School of Health & Social Development, Deakin University, Burwood Highway, 3125, Burwood, Victoria, Australia;Sydney Medical School, The University of Sydney, K25 - Medical Foundation Building, 2006, NSW, Australia;

关键词: Physical Activity;    Intervention Area;    Social Marketing;    Negative Binomial Regression;    Local Government Area;   

DOI  :  10.1186/1479-5868-7-8

 received in 2009-12-05, accepted in 2010-01-27,  发布年份 2010

来源: Springer

【 摘 要 】

BackgroundEncouraging cycling is an important way to increase physical activity in the community. The Cycling Connecting Communities (CCC) Project is a community-based cycling promotion program that included a range of community engagement and social marketing activities, such as organised bike rides and events, cycling skills courses, the distribution of cycling maps of the area and coverage in the local press. The aim of the study was to assess the effectiveness of this program designed to encourage the use of newly completed off-road cycle paths through south west Sydney, Australia.MethodsThe evaluation used a quasi-experimental design that consisted of a pre- and post-intervention telephone survey (24 months apart) of a cohort of residents (n = 909) in the intervention area (n = 520) (Fairfield and Liverpool) and a socio-demographically similar comparison area (n = 389) (Bankstown). Both areas had similar bicycle infrastructure. Four bicycle counters were placed on the main bicycle paths in the intervention and comparison areas to monitor daily bicycle use before and after the intervention.ResultsThe telephone survey results showed significantly greater awareness of the Cycling Connecting Communities project (13.5% vs 8.0%, p < 0.05) in the intervention area, with significantly higher rates of cycling in the intervention area (32.9%) compared with the comparison area (9.7%) amongst those aware of the project. There was a significant increase in use of bicycle paths in the intervention area (28.3% versus 16.2%, p < 0.05). These findings were confirmed by the bike count data.ConclusionDespite relatively modest resources, the Cycling Connecting Communities project achieved significant increases in bicycle path use, and increased cycling in some sub-groups. However, this community based intervention with limited funding had very limited reach into the community and did not increase population cycling levels.

【 授权许可】

CC BY   
© Rissel et al; licensee BioMed Central Ltd. 2010