Health impacts of Bus Rapid Transit systems worldwide
Background. The city populations are rapidly expanding all over the world which placing increased pressure on transportation systems, specifically that of private motor vehicle transport. The private motor vehicle industry has many negative implications on health such as physical activity and environmental factors. Public transport, and specifically Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) systems are an efficient form of public transportation that is also growing in popularity and proven to have a positive impact in public health such as improved physical activity, reduced gas emissions and pollutant exposure and improved traffic safety.

Objective. Quantify the health risks and benefits related to BRT in 7 cities worldwide.

Methodology. A quantitative health impact assessment approach was used. We selected 7 cities (Bogota, Colombia; Brisbane, Australia; Helsinki, Finland; Istanbul, Turkey; Mexico City, Mexico; Miami, USA; Paris, France) with >10,000 passenger trips per day and with available data on transport, environment and health. Transport, environment and health data was collected from official data sources and scientific papers. oPTHIMA tool was used to quantify the risk and benefits related to traffic fatalities, air pollution (particulate mater less than 2.5 micrometers of diameter) and physical activity, in those that shift from car to BRT. Four scenarios were created to estimate the impacts of different modal shift between car and BRT. An economic evaluation was performed to estimate the economic impacts related to mortality using the Value of Statistical Life (VSL).

Results. Overall the benefits outweigh the risks in every scenario and city. Physical activity was the main driver of the results. Mexico City BRT benefit the most, between the studied cities, with 160 annual deaths avoided and an economic impact of 290 million USD, in the most conservative scenario. In the less conservative scenario we estimated (in the 7 cities), BRT implementation could prevent 2401 deaths and save 3802 million USD annually.

Conclusions. The BRT systems may be a contributing factor to the public health of communities and cities worldwide. Physical activity related to public transport was the driver and resulted in the most substantial benefit of all estimate exposures. The cities with the largest daily BRT passenger trips resulted in the largest estimated benefits. This analysis should be used to inform policies and urban planners to consider the impact that transportation systems have on health.

Presenter: David Rojas-Rueda
Agency Affiliation: Colorado State University

Presenter Biographical Statement: [biography]