Social Inclusion and Physical Activity in Ciclovía Recreativa Programs in Latin America

Carlos Mejia-Arbelaez, Olga L. Sarmiento, Rodrigo Mora Vega, Mónica Flores Castillo, Ricardo Truffello, Lina Martínez, Catalina Medina, Oscar Guaje, José David Pinzón Ortiz, Andres F Useche, David Rojas-Rueda and Xavier Delclòs-Alió
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Carlos Mejia-Arbelaez: School of Medicine, Universidad de Los Andes, Bogotá, Carrera 1, n°18A-12, Bogotá 111711, Colombia
Olga L. Sarmiento: School of Medicine, Universidad de Los Andes, Bogotá, Carrera 1, n°18A-12, Bogotá 111711, Colombia
Rodrigo Mora Vega: Faculty of Architecture and Urbanism, Universidad de Chile, Av. Portugal 84, Santiago de Chile 8331051, Chile
Mónica Flores Castillo: Centro de Desarrollo Urbano Sustentable, Observatorio de Ciudades UC, Los Navegantes 1963, Providencia, Santiago de Chile 7520246, Chile
Ricardo Truffello: Centro de Desarrollo Urbano Sustentable, Observatorio de Ciudades UC, Los Navegantes 1963, Providencia, Santiago de Chile 7520246, Chile
Lina Martínez: Universidad ICESI, Observatorio de Políticas Públicas (POLIS), Calle 18 #122-135, Santiago de Cali 760031, Colombia
Catalina Medina: Center for Nutrition and Health Research, Department of Physical Activity and Healthy Lifestyles, National Institute of Public Health, 7a. Cerrada de Fray Pedro de Gante #50, Col. Sección XVI Tlalpan, Mexico City 14080, Mexico
Oscar Guaje: Department of Industrial Engineering, School of Engineering, Universidad de Los Andes, Carrera 1, n°18A-12, Bogotá 111711, Colombia
José David Pinzón Ortiz: School of Medicine, Universidad de Los Andes, Bogotá, Carrera 1, n°18A-12, Bogotá 111711, Colombia
Andres F Useche: Department of Industrial Engineering, School of Engineering, Universidad de Los Andes, Carrera 1, n°18A-12, Bogotá 111711, Colombia
David Rojas-Rueda: Environmental and Radiological Health Sciences, Colorado State University, Environmental Health Building, 1681 Campus Delivery, Fort Collins, CO 80523, USA
Xavier Delclòs-Alió: Institute of Urban and Regional Development, University of California, Berkeley, 316E Wurster, Berkeley, CA 94720-1870, USA

IJERPH, 2021, vol. 18, issue 2, 1-24

Abstract: Ciclovía Recreativa is a program in which streets are closed off to automobiles so that people have a safe and inclusive space for recreation and for being physically active. The study aims were: (1) to compare participant’s spatial trajectories in four Ciclovía Recreativa programs in Latin America (Bogotá, Mexico City, Santiago de Cali, and Santiago de Chile) according to socioeconomic characteristics and urban segregation of these cities; and (2) to assess the relationship between participants’ physical activity (PA) levels and sociodemographic characteristics. We harmonized data of cross-sectional studies including 3282 adults collected between 2015 and 2019. We found the highest mobility for recreation in Bogotá, followed closely by Santiago de Cali. In these two cities, the maximum SES (socioeconomic status) percentile differences between the neighborhood of origin and the neighborhoods visited as part of the Ciclovía use were 33.58 ( p -value < 0.001) and 30.38 ( p -value < 0.001), respectively, indicating that in these two cities, participants were more likely to visit higher or lower SES neighborhoods than their average SES-of-neighborhood origin. By contrast, participants from Mexico City and Santiago de Chile were more likely to stay in geographic units similar to their average SES-of-origin, having lower overall mobility during leisure time: maximum SES percentile difference 1.55 ( p -value < 0.001) and −0.91 ( p -value 0.001), respectively. PA levels of participants did not differ by sex or SES. Our results suggest that Ciclovía can be a socially inclusive program in highly unequal and segregated urban environments, which provides a space for PA whilefacilitat physical proximity, exposure to new communities and environments, and interactions between different socioeconomic groups.

Keywords: urban segregation; social inclusion; physical activity; ciclovía program; open streets; cross-sectional study (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2021
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (1)

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