Access to healthy foods through transit

An assessment of Metro’s Westside Subway Extension

Presented by: Tamanna RahmanPP 224A

Winter 2012Midterm

Metro’s ProposedWestside Subway Extension Project

Sept 2010 - Metro releases DEIR/EIS

Extends Purple line from Wilshire/Western to the Westwood VA

Project area: most densely populated

urban corridor Main centers of

employment in SoCal Expected completion

date: 2022 (earliest) Winter/Spring 2012 –

FEIR/EIS to be releasedhttp://www.metro.net/projects/westside/feis-eir-fact-sheet/

Subway-to-the-Sea…well sort of

Wilshire Transit Alternatives HIA UCLA HIA Project and LADPH submit

joint 18-pg comment letter HIA Report

How proposed Westside subway project and transit alternatives will impact public health

Provides recommendations

Obesity/overweight due to both lack of physical activity and poor nutrition

In LA County:

• 15.1% of adults consume fruits and vegetables per day

• 40% of adults eat fast food at least once a week (possibly is higher depending on location) Source:

http://www.lapublichealth.org/docs/keyindicators.pdf

Distribution of BMI in LA County

Data source: CHIS

35.9% of adults are overweight (BMI 25-30)

Source: http://www.lapublichealth.org/docs/keyindicators.pdf

22.2 % of adults are obese (BMI > 30)

22.9% of children in grades 5, 7, & 9 are obese (BMI above the 95th percentile

In Los Angeles County…

Data source: LAHealthNOW, ,UCLA Mapshare, AmericanFactFInder

Housing expenditures that exceed 30% of household income is conventionally viewed as an indicator of a housing affordability problem.

More spent on housing (and even transportation) means less available for discretionary spending (food, health care, recreation…)Data source: Social Explorer/ACS, UCLA Mapshare

Lower-Middle Income Households:

Impact of rent on disposal income is compounded by the fact that these are the same areas where the majority of the population are near poverty or low-income. Lower income neighborhoods tend to have fewer grocery stores and an abundance of fast food restaurants and convenience stores compared to higher-income neighborhoods.Data source: Social Explorer/ACS, Network for a Healthy California,

UCLA Mapshare

TANF Qualified Households:

Supermarkets within walking distance may foster access to and consumption of fresh, healthful foods while simultaneously serving as destinations that encourage PA

Near poverty as measured by qualification for TANF (temporary assistance for needy families – food stamps, housing assistance…)

Data sources: Social Explorer/ACS, Network for a Healthy California, UCLA Mapshare

Recommendations to MetroCreate new routes, increase service or re-route buses to better serve low-income residents who need access to grocery stores. (Hartford, CT)

Use TOD and new development in already built-up urban areas to attract grocery stores as tenants. (Washington, DC)

Organize weekly farmers markets at transit stop (Vermont/Wilshire station)

Skills Used Geoprocessing

Clip Buffer

Geocoding (supermarkets, farmers markets, fast food locations) Custom shapefile creation

Proposed subway route and stations Food environment (supermarket, farmers markets, fast food)

Inset map Aggregating attribute fields

aggregated annual household income data to highlight low-income populations in project area.

Boundary sub-set selection created to highlight project area that is within ½ mile of subway stops

Selection by Location Graduated symbols & colors, pie chart