Healthy transportation - healthy communities: developing objective measures of built-environment using GIS and testing significance of pedestrian variables on walking to transit

Walking to transit stations is proposed as one of the strategies to increase the use of transit. Urban planners, transportation planners, environmentalists, and health professionals encourage and support environmental interventions that can reduce the use of cars for all kinds of trips and use alternative modes of travel such as walking, biking, and mass-transit. This study investigates the influence of the built-environment on walking to transit stations. Transit-oriented communities at quarter and half-mile distances from the Dallas Area Rapid Transit (DART) station in Dallas, Texas, were analyzed to identify the relation of various constructs of built-environment on walking to the DART stations. Twenty-one pedestrian indices were reviewed to develop a comprehensive list of 73 built-environment variables used to measure the suitability to walk. This study aims to objectively measure built-environment using spatial data. Based on this criterion the total number of variables was narrowed to 32. Walking to transit, calculated as a percentage of transit users who walk to the DART LRT stations, was used as the dependent variable. The number of stations in operation and used for analysis in this study is 20(n). Therefore, bootstrapping was used to perform the statistical analysis for this study. The final pattern of variable grouping for the quarter-mile and the half-mile analysis revealed four principal components: Vehicle-Oriented Design, Density, Diversity, and Walking-Oriented Design. Bootstrap regression revealed that density ( = -0.767) was the only principal component that significantly (p<0.05) explained walking to transit station at quarter-mile distance from the station. At half-mile distance built-environment variables did not report any significant relation to walking to transit. The present study revealed that mere increase of density should not be taken as a proxy of increase in walking. Environmental interventions that can promote walking should be identified even at locations with high density. Further studies should use advanced statistical techniques such as Hierarchical Linear Modeling or Structural Equation Modeling to test the relationship of both the principal components and the individual variables that define the principal component to clearly understand the relationship of built-environment with walking to transit station

Hajj Pilgrims’ Perceptions of Trust and Internet Use for (Emergency) Information

This empirical study examines the patterns of internet use during Hajj, with the broader aim of providing suggestions on how organisations can improve risk communication at crowded religious venues using traditional and new media. The research team adopted a convenience sampling strategy to conduct in-person surveys of 348 Hajj pilgrims in the vicinity of the Grand Mosque in Madinah, Saudi Arabia during the October 2013 season. Of these, 150 pilgrims used the internet and their responses were analysed using simple descriptive statistics and binary regression analyses. The findings of this study suggest that Hajj pilgrims prefer accessing the internet through their smartphone devices and laptops, and both first timers and repeat pilgrims trusted websites hosted by the Saudi Arabian authorities, and their group leaders. Additionally, findings suggest that the trust in information sources and patterns of social media use differed by demographic characteristics such as age, language and economic characteristics. This underscores the need for diversifying the use of both traditional and new media communication channels to increase the diffusion and penetration of risk information for varied groups. Cross-checking of government efforts with such empirical studies helps demonstrate whether the funds expended to improve risk communication and raise hazard awareness are on point to make the pilgrims safer. The paper concludes by acknowledging that although the internet and social media are revolutionising the kinds of information available to pilgrims, they may lead to a loss in the sanctity, simplicity and equanimity of partaking in a pilgrimage, or bring harm to pilgrims through the misuse of personal data collected through social media sites. Suggestions are made to authorities and event organisers to keep a balance between traditional and modern practices of conducting a pilgrimage and designing information and communication technologies. A call for inspiring pilgrims to not only be consumers of information, but rather, providers of information by being ever vigilant is made. Presently, few pilgrimage destinations are using the power of the internet and social media for garnering pilgrims’ participation in risk communication and crisis preparedness which is a missed opportunity

Urban Development and Sustainable Transportation: Is Transit Oriented Development the Answer?

Introduction Transit Oriented Development (TOD) is an outcome of sustainable planning approaches guided by the principles of New Urbanism and Smart growth. The benefits of TODs are two folds: (1) create active communities that incorporate multi-modal transportation system with complimentary land uses and (2) increased use of transit system by the residents of the TOD. Generally TODs are considered to have a positive impact on communities’ identity, vitality and health. However, the success of..

Investigating the relationships among rising fuel prices, increased transit ridership, and CO2 emissions

The increase in US transit ridership in 2008 has been attributed to the increase in fuel price. This study investigates the extent to which the increase in fuel price influenced the use of transit and whether this in turn influenced the reduction in CO2 emissions. The results indicate that the number of transit trips in an urban area increases significantly with increase in fuel price. Change in fuel cost also has a negative association with emissions although changes in transit trips do not have significant association with CO2 emissions

Enhancing the use of transit in arid regions: Case of Abu Dhabi

Abu Dhabi aims to provide world-class facilities and service in the region, including a good network of public transportation. In addition to the current bus service, it plans to add light rail transit, commuter rail service, tram, and ferry service in the future. Understanding the perception of current transit users can help provide service recommendation that can enhance the transit system in the region. This study uses the transit user stated preference survey to examine the trip characteristics; travel behavior; perception of quality of service, social network, and personal attributes of transit users. The transit user characteristics substantiate the existence of social exclusion and the need for multi-housing in-fill development in the station area. Recommendations to enhance the built environment and transit services are discussed to improve accessibility and rider experience of transit users in Abu Dhabi

Early retirement intentions among Abu Dhabi Police: investigating the role of psychosocial work factors and sickness absenteeism

Abstract Background Police departments are encouraged to integrate their health and safety management systems with the operational arrangements to demonstrate commitment to the improvement of working environment in the police is by the collection and analysis of occupational health data such as sickness absence and early retirement intention. Methods About 760 responses to the Occupational Health and Safety Survey by the Abu Dhabi Police employees was used to analyse the early retirement intentions considering the work-related factors and sickness absence data. Results Logistic regression results of the unadjusted model reported higher odds that lower levels of co-worker support, supervisor support, workplace support related to intentions of early retirement. Also, unfavourable perception of health management increases the odds to early retirement among the employees. Conclusion The outcome of this study provides insights into the determinants of early retirement intentions in the less explored region of middle-east, specifically in Abu Dhabi. Thorough analysis of such data will help police organisations to prioritise plans and improve the health and wellbeing of officers, in turn contributing to strengthening the fight against crime and minimizing the number of occupational injuries and premature exit from paid work

Influence of the Built Environment on Physical Activity Choices among Emirati Male and Female Adolescents: An Examination of Parents&rsquo; and Students&rsquo; Perceptions

The UN Human Development Report 2020 ranked the United Arab Emirates (UAE) as having achieved &lsquo;very high human development&rsquo; and as being at the 31st position among all countries. Despite this, the ever increasing obesity rates among Emirati youth, higher than international standards, is alarming. This research aims at identifying how different perceptions of the built environment by parents and adolescents are likely to affect physical activity (PA) choices among male and female Emirati youth. This can help inform better health and education policies to achieve three of the interconnected UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), namely good quality health and well-being, quality education, and gender equality, that the UAE strives to achieve. Responses from 335 students (aged 14&ndash;20) from six schools and 250 parent responses in the Al Ain region of Abu Dhabi Emirate were used to understand the mean variation in perception of five built environment constructs. Further, multinomial logit regression was used to assess the health condition using the perception, behavior, and built environment measures. Results indicate that Emirati males perceive the built environment factors as barriers more than female adolescents. Parents perceive street crossing (p &lt; 0.016) and sidewalk characteristics (p &lt; 0.020) to be more of a hindrance. Traffic exposure, self-reported physical activity, and walkability near homes and schools significantly affect Emirati adolescents&rsquo; health conditions. Recommendations are made for various stakeholders including parents, school authorities, Abu Dhabi Municipality and Transportation, and the Urban Planning department on ways to enhance the built environment and encourage PA and well-being of Emirati adolescents

Influence of the Built Environment on Physical Activity Choices among Emirati Male and Female Adolescents: An Examination of Parents’ and Students’ Perceptions

The UN Human Development Report 2020 ranked the United Arab Emirates (UAE) as having achieved ‘very high human development’ and as being at the 31st position among all countries. Despite this, the ever increasing obesity rates among Emirati youth, higher than international standards, is alarming. This research aims at identifying how different perceptions of the built environment by parents and adolescents are likely to affect physical activity (PA) choices among male and female Emirati youth. This can help inform better health and education policies to achieve three of the interconnected UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), namely good quality health and well-being, quality education, and gender equality, that the UAE strives to achieve. Responses from 335 students (aged 14–20) from six schools and 250 parent responses in the Al Ain region of Abu Dhabi Emirate were used to understand the mean variation in perception of five built environment constructs. Further, multinomial logit regression was used to assess the health condition using the perception, behavior, and built environment measures. Results indicate that Emirati males perceive the built environment factors as barriers more than female adolescents. Parents perceive street crossing (p p < 0.020) to be more of a hindrance. Traffic exposure, self-reported physical activity, and walkability near homes and schools significantly affect Emirati adolescents’ health conditions. Recommendations are made for various stakeholders including parents, school authorities, Abu Dhabi Municipality and Transportation, and the Urban Planning department on ways to enhance the built environment and encourage PA and well-being of Emirati adolescents

Determinants of sickness absence in police: Case study of Abu Dhabi police department, UAE

Sickness absence among employees is reported to reduce organization profits and performance and thus threaten the organization's existence in the market. The monitoring and reporting of data on sickness absence is considered a crucial element of reactive health and safety control systems in organizations. It is one of the major indicators of organizational continuous commitment to improving the quality of working conditions. However, sickness absence in Police in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) is less investigated. The Occupational Health and Safety Survey developed for this study was distributed to 1317 employees of the Capital Police Directorate of Abu Dhabi Police. The survey was answered by 760 employees (58 %). While 230 (17 %) refused to participate, 259 (20 %) did not return the surveys, and 68 (5 %) were not surveyed as they were on authorized long-term leave for various reasons (and did not receive the survey). This study analyzes if the psychosocial work factors, physical work exposure factors, and employee's perception of the health and safety management system predict sickness absence in the Abu Dhabi Police after taking into account the other covariates. This study found no association between job control and the risk of sickness absence, in contrast to findings from other studies. There was also no association between psychological job demand and the perception of health and safety management with the risk of sickness absence in this study. Officers who fit the ‘job strain’ category did not have a significant increase in the risk of sickness absence in this study. However, high levels of combined physical exposures reported a significant relation with sickness absence. In conclusion, this, being one of the first studies in the region, provides insights on work factors and perception of HSE on sickness absence and provides recommendations within the context of the region for future studies and address sickness absence among police in the UAE

Multi-Criteria Evaluation of Irrigated Agriculture Suitability to Achieve Food Security in an Arid Environment

This research aims at assessing land suitability for large-scale agriculture using multiple spatial datasets which include climate conditions, water potential, soil capabilities, topography and land management. The study case is in the Emirate of Abu Dhabi, in the UAE. The aridity of climate in the region requires accounting for non-renewable sources like desalination and treated sewage effluent (TSE) for an accurate and realistic assessment of irrigated agriculture suitability. All datasets were systematically aggregated using an analytical hierarchical process (AHP) in a GIS model. A hierarchal structure is built and pairwise comparisons matrices are used to calculate weights of the criteria. All spatial processes were integrated to model land suitability and different types of crops are considered in the analysis. Results show that jojoba and sorghum show the best capabilities to survive under the current conditions, followed by date palm, fruits and forage. Vegetables and cereals proved to be the least preferable options. Introducing desalinated water and TSE enhanced land suitability for irrigated agriculture. These findings have positive implications for national planning, the decision-making process of land alteration for agricultural use and addressing sustainable land management and food security issues