Evaluation of the implementation of a state government community design policy aimed at increasing local walking: design issues and baseline results from RESIDE, Perth Western Australia.
OBJECTIVE
To describe the design and baseline results of an evaluation of the Western Australian government's pedestrian-friendly subdivision design code (Liveable Neighborhood (LN) Guidelines).


METHODS
Baseline results (2003-2005) from a longitudinal study of people (n=1813) moving into new housing developments: 18 Liveable, 11 Hybrid and 45 Conventional (i.e., LDs, HDs and CDs respectively) are presented including usual recreational and transport-related walking undertaken within and outside the neighborhood, and 7-day pedometer steps.


RESULTS
At baseline, more participants walked for recreation and transport within the neighborhood (52.6%; 36.1% respectively), than outside the neighborhood (17.7%; 13.2% respectively). Notably, only 20% of average total duration of walking (128.4 min/week (SD159.8)) was transport related and within the neighborhood. There were few differences between the groups' demographic, psychosocial and perceived neighborhood environmental characteristics, pedometer steps, or the type, amount and location of self-reported walking (p>0.05). However, asked what factors influenced their choice of housing development, more participants moving into LDs reported aspects of their new neighborhood's walkability as important (p<0.05).


CONCLUSIONS
The baseline results underscore the desirability of incorporating behavior and context-specific measures and value of longitudinal designs to enable changes in behavior, attitudes, and urban form to be monitored, while adjusting for baseline residential location preferences.
Giles-Corti
Billie
B
School of Population Health, UWA, Crawley, Western Australia. Billie.Giles-Corti@uwa.edu.au
Knuiman
Matthew
M
Timperio
Anna
A
Van Niel
Kimberly
K
Pikora
Terri J
TJ
Bull
Fiona C L
FC
Shilton
Trevor
T
Bulsara
Max
M
D000328:Adult; D002958:City Planning; D005260:Female; D017408:Guidelines as Topic; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011050:Policy Making; D015397:Program Evaluation; D013219:State Government; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D016138:Walking; D014904:Western Australia