July 8, 2011 – It seems so, according to a study1 Canada, which concludes that weather conditions would influence the number of pedestrians moving in cities.
Study by researchers at McGill and Concordia universities shows that an increase in temperature of 5 ° C leads to an increase in pedestrian traffic by 14% and the passage from snow to dry weather increases the number by 23%. of walkers. And, as we suspected, pedestrians go out less when temperatures are below zero or when it is snowing or raining. On average, pedestrian traffic decreases by 32% on rainy or snowy days and when the sunshine increases by 5%, the number of pedestrians increases by 2%.
“It is not the absolute temperature that prevents pedestrians from leaving,” says Luc de Montigny, one of the authors of the study. “For example, in northern towns, walkers are used to sub-zero temperatures. Rather, it is the variations in temperature and precipitation in relation to the preparation or expectations of pedestrians that constitute a brake on walking, ”explains the researcher.
For 7 months, researchers scrutinized pedestrian traffic in 9 cities2 of the northern hemisphere whose population varies between 18,000 and 1.2 million inhabitants. Fixed cameras were positioned in squares, squares and public parks. Among the data collected, precipitation, ambient temperature and sunshine would have the most impact on pedestrians.
Given the growing rise in obesity rates around the world, these findings provide food for thought for planners and architects, believe the study’s authors. Shelters for pedestrians and better management of snow removal could, for example, significantly encourage pedestrian traffic, they add.
Emmanuelle Bergeron – PasseportSanté.net
1. De Montigny L, Ling R, Zacharias J. The Effects of Weather on Walking Rates in Nine Cities, Environment and Behavior, published online May 20, 2011. To view the abstract: http://eab.sagepub.com. [Consulté le 7 juillet 2011.]
2. Santa Cruz in the Canaries, Kilmarnock and Glasgow in Scotland, Ruse in Bulgaria, Gliwice in Poland, Oulu and Jakobstad in Finland, Sion in Switzerland and Ithaca in the United States.
