Impacts of cycling and walking on health, environment, and society: Pakistan a case in point

Abstract

The existence of automobiles such as cars, trucks, jeeps, buses, and, motorbikes bring ease to our lives and allow us to transport a large number of goods and passengers from one place to another. Due to their reliability and tendency to reduce the commute times, people of today’s modern world prefer these transportation modes. However, the excessive use of these fossil-fueled automobiles leaves hazardous impacts on health, environment, and quality of life. Use of fossil fuel-based automobiles leads to increased greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, elevated levels of air pollution, noise pollution, water pollution and disposal of waste. Moreover, it also raises the risk of traffic accidents and traffic congestion. Furthermore, the reliance on passive modes of transportation removes the physical activity from people’s lives. This lack of physical activity causes various physical (cardiac, hypertension, obesity, diabetes, allergies) as well as psychological issues. In order to reduce, if not eliminate, these hazardous impacts on environment and health, use of active transport i.e. cycling and walking is being promoted in developed and developing countries. The research undertaken aims to highlight the impact of cycling and walking on various physical as well as psychological diseases. Moreover, this research also highlights the positive impacts of cycling and walking on various environmental and societal factors. Through this research, health, environmental and societal factors are discussed and ranked using the Fuzzy VIKOR under the influence of various criteria. The outcomes of this research show the positive impacts of cycling and walking on various diseases, environmental and societal factors. Moreover, this research can help formulate a policy which can drive people towards the use of active modes of transportation. It is aimed that through practical implementation of the policies formulated, the rate of various diseases and harmful effects on the environment and society can be reduced.