Variations between major and regional Australian cities in physically active and sedentary travel behaviors

Abstract

Promoting active travel is a public health priority. However, existing studies on active travel tend to focus on major cities: little is known about travel in regional cities. This study examined differences in the prevalence of walking, cycling, public transport use, and car use among adult residents of major, satellite, and regional cities in Queensland, Australia. Logistic regression analyses were used to examine the odds of travel behaviors according to city type. Overall, 14.8% of participants reported any walking, 7.3% walking at least 30 min/d, 1.9% cycling, 4.7% using public transport, and 42.3% using cars over 1 h/d. Compared with residents of major city, residents of satellite and regional cities had significantly lower odds of participating in any walking, walking ≥30 min/d, and using public transport; and residents of regional cities had a significantly higher odds of cycling and lower odds of using a car ≥1 h/d. Differences in travel behaviors between city type were more pronounced for working-age adults (18–64 years) than older adults (65–84 years). Our findings suggest that working-age residents of satellite cities are the least active for transport. Initiatives to promote active travel in Australia may need to prioritize areas outside of major cities.