Could kicking your car to the curb be the key to better health? That appears to be the verdict of a new study by researchers at University College London.
According to the Department of Health, only 39 per cent of men and 29 per cent of women in the UK complete the recommended level of health enhancing physical activity – and so the answer to the UK’s obesity problem may revolve around swapping car journeys for walking and cycling.
Commissioned by the Department for Transport, the report suggests that physical inactivity is costing the UK in excess of £6.5billion a year and directly costing the NHS an additional £1.08billion a year.
Now the authors of the study suggest it would be wise to increase physical activity through more walking and cycling and that the best way to do this is by reducing car use. They state that car ownership is entrenched into people’s lifestyles and reduction is only feasible if households can maintain access to cars when they really need them but make rational and economical decisions for each journey.
Car clubs are suggested as one possible solution. This would help people to shift away from owning cars and using them for all journeys and instead only turning to them when they really need them. This in turn could help households save money.
