SWUTC Research Project Description
Title of Project: Quantifying the Impact of School Siting Policies Using Health Impact Assessment
Project Number: 167865
Principal Investigator:
Tracy McMillan
(512) 471-2708
P.I. Affiliation: University of Texas at Austin
Project Monitor:
Michael Pratt, MD
Division of Nutrition and Physical Activity
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
(770) 488-5820
Project Status: Active
Date Started: 9/1/05
Estimation Completion Date: 8/31/06
Estimated Cost - Current Fiscal: $22,000
Estimated Cost - Total Planned: $22,000
Project Summary:
Project Abstract:
The location of a school within a community affects household transportation choices, local traffic congestion, traffic safety and overall public health. Placing a school within walking or bicycling distance of residences opens up the possibility of independent or escorted travel by youth by these non-motorized modes, which could have a positive effect on traffic congestion, air quality near the school and children’s health. Neighborhoods designed for walking and bicycling and where the activity is prevalent and anticipated by automobile drivers would hopefully be safer traffic environments as well, as compared to those neighborhoods where walking and bicycling is an infrequent and unexpected activity.
With any policy, it is important to not only consider the direct effects but also the externalities, or indirect effects. It is also important to examine a policy temporally, meaning not just looking at the immediate impact of a policy but also the direct and indirect effects across a period of time. This proposal suggests that the costs and benefits of school siting policies in communities should include an assessment of health impacts, particularly those that occur as an outcome of transportation. The researchers will consider potential school locations within the Austin area that vary based on transportation factors (e.g., % of catchment area within walking/bicycling distance of the school, quality of the pedestrian transportation system) and the policies used to determine school site selection to determine the costs and benefits, including health outcomes, related to school siting.
The results of this research will make a contribution to both practice and scholarship. The study examines land use decision-making within a broader social, temporal and policy context. Communities and public officials can use the methodology and the findings to educate one other on the complexity and costs and benefits, in the short-term and long-term, associated with facility planning. The research also contributes to the growing body of literature examining the relationships between transportation planning and public health, and utilization of health impact assessments as a policy analysis tool.
Project Objectives:
The objectives of the study are as follows:
Task Descriptions:
Task 1. Identification of case study locations
Dr. McMillan and the graduate research assistant will work to identify 2-3 case study locations in the Austin area include in the project. Scott Cunningham with the Texas Department of Transportation Austin District currently consults with several school districts in the area regarding transportation issues near schools and will be a useful resource in identifying potential case study sites. AISD will also be approached about assisting with the study in relationship to the recently passed bond measure.
Task 2. Literature review and methodology refinement
Literature including but not limited to schools, school siting, health outcomes, health economics, transportation externalities, and economic evaluation and health impact assessment will be reviewed to identify costs and benefits and the refinement of the HIA methodology for the Austin case studies and subsequent analysis of the data.
Task 3. Data collection and analysis
The graduate research assistant and Dr. McMillan, with the assistance of a consultant from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention who is an expert in HIA, will identify collect local data on costs and benefits of school siting, including health, for each case study site. This data will then be analyzed using cost benefit analysis evaluation methods.
Task 4. Report preparation
A comprehensive final report will be developed from this work. It is also anticipated that 1-2 research papers and 1-2 conference presentations will be generated from this research.
Task 5. Educational presentations
Presentations will also be given at the local, regional and/or state level, along with in the classroom, to policy makers, practitioners and students on the benefits and limitations of this policy analysis tool.
Index Terms:
Transportation Planning; Public Health; Schools; Traffic Safety; Location