Bacon's Rebellion

Democracy Thrives in Sunlight

DC Metropolitan Area: America’s Fittest City

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by

James A. Bacon
in

The American College Of Sports Medicine has just named the Washington, DC Metropolitan Area as the nation’s fittest city – for the third year in a row. The ratings are created through the use of a fitness index which measures everything from baseball fields to how many servings of fruit and vegetables the residents eat in a day. On a more quantitative basis, the incidence of diabetes is also a factor. The DC-area has a 6.7% diabetes rate compared to 8.3% nationally and 10.5% in America’s least healthy city – Oklahoma City. You can read the full article here.

I found the most interesting part of the article to be a short description of people biking or walking to work. The article says, “Washington has the second highest rate of people walking or biking to work aided by 60 miles of bike lanes.”. Isn’t that interesting? I have read countless comments from people on this site about the low level of pedestrian friendliness in Northern Virginia and the Washington D.C. area. However, when it comes to the DC area, many of the commenters on this blog do not let facts cloud their arguments.

I have also read a lot of comments about people paying their location variable costs. I wonder if superior fitness would be a location variable cost. Given the statistical difference between DC and cities on the wrong end of the list you’d have to say that fitness varies by location. Given the recent debate on health care it seems that illness certainly has a cost. So, when do I start getting rebates on my health insurance from the people living in RoVa?

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17 responses to “DC Metropolitan Area: America’s Fittest City”

  1. Larry G Avatar
    Larry G

    The issue of "bikeability" of an area is not the same as "fitness" though as biking is just one way to get "fit".

    and it does not distinguish either from the availability of recreational bike trails – which don't "connect" to anything verses a network that would allow someone – for instance – to actually bike to work.

    A bike can easily travel at 10mph or better and in many countries of the world – and I'm sure world-traveler Groveton can confirm this – biking is fairly common and one reason why many countries do not have near as many fatties as we do – often cited by those opposed to Universal HC in this country – as the reason why it "works" in all the other Industrialized countries in the world but not ours.

    The claim is that the reason our life expectancy is shorter and our health care expenses twice as much is because we are FATTIES… can't be helped.. American is unique…

    …and Gawd Forbid we attempt to treat bikes and bike trails as potentially REAL transportation when we much prefer our 300lb butts "parked" in an oversized SUV chair.

    and of course, the entire concept of considering the bike something more than idle recreation is clearly yet another misguided "liberal" idea.

    For giggles and grins, in case folks did not know, GOGGLE MAPS now will provide "bike" directions between two points as it tries to incorporate connecting bike trails …or attempts to "connect" them via public streets.

    try it yourself. Say.. Groveton – try it from your house to the airport… I assume you are a carry-on luggage guy and don't check bags, eh?

  2. Groveton Avatar
    Groveton

    LarrtG – either you believe the study or you don't. I do. The Washington DC Metropolitan area has the most people who walk or bike to work. Second in the country. That's what it says. So, as all of you folks are complaining about the inaccessibility of Northern Virginia … you should keep that in mind. We may not be as accessible as we should be but we're more accessible than you.

  3. Larry G Avatar
    Larry G

    well Groveton – can you bike or ride to work?

  4. Anonymous Avatar
    Anonymous

    The bike lanes in NOVA and DC have gradually become a real treasure. there is still a long way to go.

    Also, DC has relatively good weather much of the year. Biking in Boston or Houston takes a lot more grit.

    =========================

    well Groveton – can you bike or ride to work?

    For nine years I lived only a mile from my office but it was not bikeable. The road was narrow, winding, hilly and dangerous with speeding cars. There were no sidewalks and the neighborhood voted them down when offered.

    I could have taken a different longer flatter route with sidewalks, but it turned out that I often needed my car for business during the day, anyway.

    Where you live and work are not the only issues when it comes to riding.

  5. James A. Bacon Avatar
    James A. Bacon

    Groveton, Yes, the "D.C. metropolitan area" does have a lot of bike lanes. But the credit belongs overwhelmingly to the efforts made by Arlington, Washington, D.C., and possibly to Alexandria in the urban core. (I can't speak for the Maryland jurisdictions.)

    Arlington is one the the most pedestrian friendly jurisdictions in the country. So are parts of Alexandria and, of course, D.C.

    If you look at the 2000 Census data, I think you'll find that percentage of the population of Fairfax, Loudoun and Prince William that walk/bike is very, very low.

  6. Larry G Avatar
    Larry G

    all due to liberals.. right?

    we know how Conservatives feel about such "amenities" especially if they come from taxes…

  7. Anonymous Avatar
    Anonymous

    Groveton:

    Good post.

    Actually location-efficient mortgages take biking into account so there is a location-variable cost angle.

    Larry: Are you seeking to capture the TRAEPH trophy away from Groveton?

    Observer

  8. Anonymous Avatar
    Anonymous

    Well, now we have a chance to est this theory with independent data.

    Zillow home appraisals include a walkability index. it would be curuous to examine a bunch of otherwise similar homes (except) for walkability index) and see if they are valued at more money or not.

    RH

  9. Anonymous Avatar
    Anonymous

    Again the gross impact of failure to understand human settlement patterns floats to the surface.

    Mr. Bacon said:

    "Groveton, Yes, the "D.C. metropolitan area" does have a lot of bike lanes. But the credit belongs overwhelmingly to the efforts made by Arlington, Washington, D.C., and possibly to Alexandria in the urban core. (I can't speak for the Maryland jurisdictions.)

    Arlington is one the the most pedestrian friendly jurisdictions in the country. So are parts of Alexandria and, of course, D.C.

    If you look at the 2000 Census data, I think you'll find that percentage of the population of Fairfax, Loudoun and Prince William that walk/bike is very, very low.

    WAKE UP!!!

    ARLINGTON IS TWO BETA COMMUNITIES, ALEXANDRIA IS ONE. THE FEDERAL DISTRICT IS 10,000 ACRES.

    FAIRFAX IS 24 TIMES THAT BIG. COVERS 9 OR 10 BETA COMMUNITIES.

    SOME BETA COMMUNITES HAVE GOOD PED ACCESS (RESTON) NOT GREAT, BUT GOOD.

    SOME BETA VILLAGES HAVE GREAT PED ACCESS.

    GET A GRIP ON SCALE.

    AND THE NEED FOR BALANCE.

    Observer

    Sorry to shout but if we want to make progress we all have to learn…

  10. Anonymous Avatar
    Anonymous

    I was so mad, it did not make myself clear,

    All of the Federal District is 39,000 acres.

    The 10,000 acres refers to the part that is in the Zentrum and which has most of the walk and ride to work areas.

    The rest is a lot like the adjacent Counties in Maryland — Montgomery and Prince Georges.

    Both of those Counties, like Fairfax, estern Loudoun and Prince William that make up the majority of the area inside the Clear Edge around the Core of the SubRegion (I am getting Risse's Vocabulary down quite well) are random agglomerations of orphan components, not places that can be judged by municipal border. See note on Fairfax above.

    Observer

  11. Larry G Avatar
    Larry G

    and I suspect not near as bikeable or walkable as the Federal DC areas.

    I was looking specifically for that kind of index and let me give an example.

    How about for the proposed Tysons Corner. How far away will people be able to walk or bike (safely) from the TOD?

  12. Anonymous Avatar
    Anonymous

    I live in the Dunn Loring area, very close to Tysons. I have an office near the Gallows/route 50 interchange and another one in the heart of downtown DC. It is far easier for me to ride my bicycle 14 miles to the DC location than it is to go the 3 or 4 miles (max) to the Virginia location. In the spring/summer/fall I ride my bike frequently to downtown DC. I am probably about 1.5 miles from the malls at Tysons and I wouldn't even dream of riding my bike there.

    I have friends and business colleagues in the Netherlands who can and do ride a dedicated system of inter-city bike trails from home to work to shopping areas. I realize that kind of infrastructure has a cost, but it's probably a lot cheaper to build in the bicycle lanes and trails at the planning stages than it is to try to overlay them on an existing automobile-based system later.

    As for general fitness, last month I drove nearly across the country on back roads through the south. My visual observation is a very poor excuse for scientific data collection, but I was stunned by the apparent rampant obesity, particularly in rural Mississippi and Alabama. It seemed virtually all demographic categories were riven with gross obesity. Children, men, women, old, young. Where there were in-gatherings (town fairs in county seats, the Spring Scrimmage Alabama game in Tuscaloosa, for example) there was a veritable tidal wave of folks who could not even walk without having to accommodate the fat on their legs and midriffs. Something is terribly wrong with this picture.

    Scout

  13. Anonymous Avatar
    Anonymous

    "but it's probably a lot cheaper to build in the bicycle lanes and trails at the planning stages than it is to try to overlay them on an existing automobile-based system later."

    I came from Martha's vineyard wich has a strong biking background and a good network of bike trails that are heavily used (in summer, winter, not so much).

    Yet when I suggested to my Fauquier supervisor that they at least put bike trails in the plans, he all but laughed at me. Byciclists don't spend any money, he said.

    I'll bet your downtown location has shower facilities where you can clean up after a muggy summer morning ride, and the gallows road site doesn't. It is going to need more than bike trails to make this work.

    I support adequate bike trails, but lets not get crazy about it: even in the best locations bikes and walking support a small fraction of the necessary trips.

    And I don't see to many arthritic 64 year old boomers riding around either.

    RH

  14. Larry G Avatar
    Larry G

    Bike trails and lanes can be a strategic asset in the case of disaster…. and people need to move and the buses and existing transportation arteries are gridlocked.

  15. Anonymous Avatar
    Anonymous

    Bike trails and lanes can be a strategic asset in the case of disaster….

    You mean like those people that walked to the Dome in New Orleans?

    If you are on a bike, on a bike lane in front of my car and there is a disaster behind me, then you are about to get hit by two disasters.

    RH

  16. Larry G Avatar
    Larry G

    If it's a disaster – then bikes and even on foot – using designated bike / ped routes is not unheard of – especially if it can get you to a staging area or safe place.

    I'd never rule out on foot or on bike as available options as appropriate.

  17. rh Avatar
    rh

    Now that Metro has raised its fares, DC may get a lot more fit as people begin walking.

    RH

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