Disparities in urban neighborhood conditions: Evidence from GIS measures and field observation in New York city

Although many low-income urban areas are highly walkable by conventional measures such as population density or land use mix, chronic diseases related to lack of physical activity are more common among residents of these areas. Disparities in neighborhood conditions may make poor areas less attracti...

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Main Authors: Neckerman, K., Lovasi, G., Davies, Stephen, Purciel, M., Quinn, J., Feder, E., Raghunath, N., Wasserman, B., Rundle, A.
Format: Journal Article
Published: 2009
Online Access:http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11937/33017
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author Neckerman, K.
Lovasi, G.
Davies, Stephen
Purciel, M.
Quinn, J.
Feder, E.
Raghunath, N.
Wasserman, B.
Rundle, A.
author_facet Neckerman, K.
Lovasi, G.
Davies, Stephen
Purciel, M.
Quinn, J.
Feder, E.
Raghunath, N.
Wasserman, B.
Rundle, A.
author_sort Neckerman, K.
building Curtin Institutional Repository
collection Online Access
description Although many low-income urban areas are highly walkable by conventional measures such as population density or land use mix, chronic diseases related to lack of physical activity are more common among residents of these areas. Disparities in neighborhood conditions may make poor areas less attractive environments for walking, offsetting the advantages of density and land use mix. This study compared poor and nonpoor neighborhoods in New York City, using geographic information systems measures constructed from public data for US census tracts within New York City (N2,172) as well as field observation of a matched-pair sample of 76 block faces on commercial streets in poor and nonpoor neighborhoods. Poor census tracts had significantly fewer street trees, landmarked buildings, clean streets, and sidewalk cafes, and higher rates of felony complaints, narcotics arrests, and vehicular crashes. The field observation showed similar results. Improving aesthetic and safety conditions in poor neighborhoods may help reduce disparities in physical activity among urban residents. © 2009 Palgrave Macmillan Ltd.
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spelling curtin-20.500.11937-330172018-03-29T09:08:37Z Disparities in urban neighborhood conditions: Evidence from GIS measures and field observation in New York city Neckerman, K. Lovasi, G. Davies, Stephen Purciel, M. Quinn, J. Feder, E. Raghunath, N. Wasserman, B. Rundle, A. Although many low-income urban areas are highly walkable by conventional measures such as population density or land use mix, chronic diseases related to lack of physical activity are more common among residents of these areas. Disparities in neighborhood conditions may make poor areas less attractive environments for walking, offsetting the advantages of density and land use mix. This study compared poor and nonpoor neighborhoods in New York City, using geographic information systems measures constructed from public data for US census tracts within New York City (N2,172) as well as field observation of a matched-pair sample of 76 block faces on commercial streets in poor and nonpoor neighborhoods. Poor census tracts had significantly fewer street trees, landmarked buildings, clean streets, and sidewalk cafes, and higher rates of felony complaints, narcotics arrests, and vehicular crashes. The field observation showed similar results. Improving aesthetic and safety conditions in poor neighborhoods may help reduce disparities in physical activity among urban residents. © 2009 Palgrave Macmillan Ltd. 2009 Journal Article http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11937/33017 10.1057/jphp.2008.47 restricted
spellingShingle Neckerman, K.
Lovasi, G.
Davies, Stephen
Purciel, M.
Quinn, J.
Feder, E.
Raghunath, N.
Wasserman, B.
Rundle, A.
Disparities in urban neighborhood conditions: Evidence from GIS measures and field observation in New York city
title Disparities in urban neighborhood conditions: Evidence from GIS measures and field observation in New York city
title_full Disparities in urban neighborhood conditions: Evidence from GIS measures and field observation in New York city
title_fullStr Disparities in urban neighborhood conditions: Evidence from GIS measures and field observation in New York city
title_full_unstemmed Disparities in urban neighborhood conditions: Evidence from GIS measures and field observation in New York city
title_short Disparities in urban neighborhood conditions: Evidence from GIS measures and field observation in New York city
title_sort disparities in urban neighborhood conditions: evidence from gis measures and field observation in new york city
url http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11937/33017