A Health Impact Assessment of a Proposed Bill to Decrease Speed Limits on Local Roads in Massachusetts (U.S.A.)

James, Peter; Ito, Kate; Banay, Rachel F.; Buonocore, Jonathan J.; Wood, Benjamin; Arcaya, Mariana C.

doi:10.3390/ijerph111010269

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A Health Impact Assessment of a Proposed Bill to Decrease Speed Limits on Local Roads in Massachusetts (U.S.A.)

Peter James

^1,2,3,*,

Kate Ito

³,

Rachel F. Banay

^1,3,

Jonathan J. Buonocore

⁴,

Benjamin Wood

⁵ and

Mariana C. Arcaya

^3,6

Department of Environmental Health, Harvard School of Public Health, 401 Park Drive, Boston, MA 02215, USA

Department of Epidemiology, Harvard School of Public Health, 401 Park Drive, Boston, MA 02215, USA

Metropolitan Area Planning Council, 60 Temple Place, Boston, MA 02111, USA

⁴

Center for Health and the Global Environment, Harvard School of Public Health, 401 Park Drive, Boston, MA 02215, USA

⁵

Massachusetts Department of Public Health, Division of Prevention and Wellness, 250 Washington Street, Boston, MA 02108, USA

⁶

Harvard Center for Population and Development Studies, 9 Bow Street, Cambridge, MA 02138, USA

Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.

Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2014, 11(10), 10269-10291; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph111010269

Received: 29 August 2014 / Revised: 19 September 2014 / Accepted: 23 September 2014 / Published: 2 October 2014

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Health Impact Assessment: Realizing Its Potential)

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Abstract

Decreasing traffic speeds increases the amount of time drivers have to react to road hazards, potentially averting collisions, and makes crashes that do happen less severe. Boston’s regional planning agency, the Metropolitan Area Planning Council (MAPC), in partnership with the Massachusetts Department of Public Health (MDPH), conducted a Health Impact Assessment (HIA) that examined the potential health impacts of a proposed bill in the state legislature to lower the default speed limits on local roads from 30 miles per hour (mph) to 25 mph. The aim was to reduce vehicle speeds on local roads to a limit that is safer for pedestrians, cyclists, and children. The passage of this proposed legislation could have had far-reaching and potentially important public health impacts. Lower default speed limits may prevent around 18 fatalities and 1200 serious injuries to motorists, cyclists and pedestrians each year, as well as promote active transportation by making local roads feel more hospitable to cyclists and pedestrians. While a lower speed limit would increase congestion and slightly worsen air quality, the benefits outweigh the costs from both a health and economic perspective and would save the state approximately $62 million annually from prevented fatalities and injuries. View Full-Text

Keywords: health impact assessment; speed limits; crashes; injury prevention; air pollution; physical activity; monetization

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James, P.; Ito, K.; Banay, R.F.; Buonocore, J.J.; Wood, B.; Arcaya, M.C. A Health Impact Assessment of a Proposed Bill to Decrease Speed Limits on Local Roads in Massachusetts (U.S.A.). Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2014, 11, 10269-10291. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph111010269

AMA Style

James P, Ito K, Banay RF, Buonocore JJ, Wood B, Arcaya MC. A Health Impact Assessment of a Proposed Bill to Decrease Speed Limits on Local Roads in Massachusetts (U.S.A.). International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health. 2014; 11(10):10269-10291. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph111010269

Chicago/Turabian Style

James, Peter, Kate Ito, Rachel F. Banay, Jonathan J. Buonocore, Benjamin Wood, and Mariana C. Arcaya. 2014. "A Health Impact Assessment of a Proposed Bill to Decrease Speed Limits on Local Roads in Massachusetts (U.S.A.)" International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health 11, no. 10: 10269-10291. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph111010269

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A Health Impact Assessment of a Proposed Bill to Decrease Speed Limits on Local Roads in Massachusetts (U.S.A.)

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