On Tue, Dec 20, 2011 at 1:18 PM, Megan Wier
<Megan.Wier@sfdph.org> wrote:
Hi everyone -
I wanted to share the following report summarizing the findings of a
health impact assessment (HIA) of a potential road pricing program in
San Francisco conducted by the San Francisco Department of Public
Health's Program on Health, Equity and Sustainability as I thought it
may be of interest to the list. The HIA was completed this Fall with
funding from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation's Active Living Research
Program. A summary and detailed technical report of the findings are
available at: http://www.sfphes.org/HIA_Road_Pricing.htm.
For the HIA analysis, SFDPH used a variety of methods to assess
potential transportation-related health effects - including air
quality-related premature mortality, traffic noise-related annoyance and
heart attacks, injury to pedestrians and cyclists, and health benefits
from active transportation – and evaluated health-related equity effects
and associated economic value. The HIA found that transportation system
operation in San Francisco has substantial health burdens and benefits
today. Health burdens are expected to increase in the future owing to
increasing motor vehicles on local roadways and increasing population
densities in already congested areas. However, there are also estimated
increases in active transportation (walking and biking) that bring some
health benefits and save lives. Road pricing, if implemented, could
moderate but not entirely eliminate the changes associated with a future
under “business as usual” that includes increasing populations and
traffic and no new policies or funding to manage the transportation
system. Road pricing could also generate significant economic value by
reducing transportation-related adverse effects and increasing walking
and biking. HIA recommendations include increasing congestion pricing
fees where they can reduce health risks (e.g., on spare the air days)
and investing in targeted infrastructure to reduce pedestrian and
cyclist injury and increase active transportation.
Thank you, and happy holidays!
-------------------------------------------------------------
Megan L. Wier, MPH, Epidemiologist
Program on Health, Equity and Sustainability
San Francisco Department of Public Health
phone: 415-252-3972, fax: 415-252-3964
Megan.Wier@sfdph.org
www.sfphes.org
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