By Professor Melody Smith, Faculty of Medical and Health Sciences, University of Auckland

AOTEAROA NEW ZEALAND HAS BEEN EXPERIENCING LOW AND DECLINING LEVELS OF ACTIVE TRAVEL OVER THE PAST DECADE, AND INFRASTRUCTURE IS INTEGRAL TO reversing this trend.

Findings from the largest ever international study on physical activity and health behaviours in children and adolescents were recently released. The Active Healthy Kids Global Alliance’s Global Matrix 4.0 results highlight the need for urgent action to turn around low physical activity levels and high rates of sedentary behaviours in children and adolescents globally. 

Aotearoa New Zealand’s grade for organised sport and physical activity placed us fifth equal (B-) of the 57 countries, and our government grade of A saw us at the top of all countries for this indicator. Our 2022 government grade was heavily influenced by the significant work of Ihi Aotearoa/Sport New Zealand in developing a national outcomes framework, and its considerable array of strategies to support activity. 

At the time of information collation, there were also positive shifts towards supporting active transport infrastructure, such as Waka Kotahi NZ Transport Agency’s Innovating Streets for People program, which was rolled out in early 2020.

A dismal ‘D’ for active transport

Despite these investments, we had one of the lowest rates of active transport (a score of D), with only five countries performing more poorly. Overall, only a third of children and young people are getting to school actively, with adolescents faring worst at only 22 per cent. This is in keeping with a trend of low and declining active transport in the country over the past decade. The obvious question is: What needs to be done? First, we can learn from countries that did well. Denmark and Japan topped the table for active transportation with an A-, compared with C- for all 57 countries and very high Human Development Index countries. Both Denmark and Japan have small school catchment areas, with half of children in Denmark living less than 1.5 kilometres from school.

Infrastructure is an integral ingredient of the active travel recipe. Neighbourhoods that have better street connectivity, and comprehensive street designs that support and prioritise active travel modes, and that promote safety from traffic, are important. Denmark noted its well-developed cycle lane networks, and government’s persistent efforts to implement campaigns and safe routes to schools as key contributors to its success.

Research with children, schools and whānau/families in Aotearoa New Zealand consistently highlight the essential role of improving traffic safety to facilitate active transport. There is a dearth of connected, safe infrastructure for cycling across the country, resulting in extremely low rates of travelling by bike in children and adolescents. Being able to cross roads safely is also a priority, with calls for more signalised crossings, or at least raised zebra crossings to slow traffic down.

Improved driver behaviour is also a key ingredient, with speeding, inattentive driving, running red lights, and failing to stop at pedestrian crossings all common issues. Infrastructural approaches (e.g., using self-explaining roads principles, traffic calming, and reducing speed limits) are still important in this context – they are likely to have a more sustained and pervasive impact on driver behaviours than targeted behavioural approaches where the environmental context remains unchanged.

Of course, the story is more complex than, ‘If you build it, they will come.’ School and community relationships, having an active community culture, a sense of connection with neighbours, and facilitating partnerships with community groups and agencies can support sustained implementation of effective programs; however, the proviso remains that the physical environment must be safe enough for young people to get around actively.

Why is this important?

Active travel is an essential piece of the complex and interrelated puzzles of promoting human and planetary health. More than nine per cent of deaths in high-income countries are attributed to physical inactivity. Aotearoa New Zealand performs poorly in international comparisons of inactivity; in 2012, Aotearoa New Zealand was ranked the 27th most inactive country (of 122 countries). Accumulating an average of an hour a day of moderate-to-vigorous-intensity physical activity (i.e., activities that make you ‘huff and puff’) is recommended for child and adolescent physical, mental, and cognitive health.

Unsurprisingly, active travel is linked with significantly higher physical activity levels and a greater likelihood of achieving the physical activity recommendations. Interestingly, health behaviours tend to track over time, so supporting children and young people to be active is beneficial for their current and future wellbeing. It’s not just about the activity, though – every motorised vehicle trip replaced with an active one reduces air and noise pollution, both of which are detrimental to human health. Our country’s transport sector is the fastest growing source of greenhouse gas emissions, with nearly 70 per cent of these emissions coming from cars, SUVs, utes, vans, and light trucks. Negative impacts of this dominance of motorised transport extend beyond individual health (mortality and morbidity from physical inactivity, road traffic injuries, and emissions exposure) to community (community severance and reduced social cohesion) and planetary health. Nationally and internationally, calls for replacing motorised trips with active travel modes are being made to support human and planetary health, and to contribute to achieving the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals.

Yet resistance to change persists. A recent example was the argument against lowering speeds across Tāmaki Makaurau Auckland (including around schools) in early 2020. These arguments were pervasive, despite clear evidence for the value of slowing traffic speeds for reducing the risk and severity of vehicle-related crashes, and for improving overall public health. Pushback on cycle lanes and ‘bikelash’ is commonplace. An Australian study showed that more than half of drivers perceived cyclists as less than human. We’ve also seen a mixture of systems failures – intrinsically linked with ableist attitudes and exacerbated through visible difference – restrict participation and mobility among children and young people with disability.

What now?

Key recommendations from the 2022 Aotearoa New Zealand Physical Activity Report Card included:

Promote all dimensions of physical activity (overall physical activity, active play, recreation, organised sport and active transport) and the reduction of screen time through policy, research, evidence-based social marketing campaigns, and urban design.

Support active transportation through investment in multi-sectoral approaches, including urban planning, school and community-led initiatives, and social marketing campaigns.

Implement targeted, comprehensive, and population‑specific approaches for supporting health‑promoting activity behaviours, and reducing inequities in these behaviours for children and youth in Aotearoa New Zealand.

Ultimately, multiple stakeholders across the transport, education and health sectors play integral roles. Strategic partnerships – including a shared vision, common goals and consistent messaging – are important. It is also worth noting that significant and transformative changes have occurred since we collated evidence for our report card – importantly, the government’s $350-million Transport Choices program, which focuses on more sustainable, active travel options to school. Behaviour change post infrastructural interventions takes time, and it is reasonable to expect a time lag between infrastructure completion and widescale improvements in active transport. It is possible we will see the impacts of this investment in the next report card.

About the Global Matrix
Fifty-seven countries and 682 experts participated in the Active Healthy Kids Global Alliance’s Global Matrix 4.0, using harmonised processes to benchmark 10 common indicators related to health behaviours in children and adolescents. This is the fourth Global Matrix – the first was produced in 2014 and 15 countries were involved. Global Matrix physical activity report cards have been produced every two years thereafter, with a two-year delay for the most recent card due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Aotearoa New Zealand has participated in each wave of the Global Matrix, providing regular national-level benchmarking, and highlighting how well we are faring compared with international evidence. The Global Matrix 4.0 covers the period between 2018 and 2022, with variation across countries in the inclusion or exclusion of data collected during the pandemic.