The Global Health Risk of Traffic

When you think of global health risks, what comes to mind -starving children, the hazards of war, the growing AIDS epidemic? 

Did you think of... the public health costs of traffic congestion? Did you know.... that traffic not only contributes to road fatalities and injuries, but also contributes to high blood pressure, heart disease and other stress related illnesses?

Consider the following risks:

Road Fatalities

"The World Health Organization (WHO) found that wealthy nations such as the U.S., U.K. and Germany own more than half of the world's registered cars but suffer only 8.5 percent of global traffic fatalities.
It is low-income nations, from Vietnam to Ghana to Nepal, that must contend with more than 40 percent of worldwide traffic deaths despite owning less than 10 percent of all registered cars." Read more...

Pollution
"Sitting in traffic leads to higher tailpipe emissions which everyone is exposed to.."Read more...

Noise Risks
Noise from traffic is putting nearly 1 in 6 San Francisco residents at risk for heart disease, high blood pressure and other stress-related illnesses.." Read more...

We welcome your comments:
What do you think OT's can do to address the risks created by traffic? Should state and national OT organizations be addressing this area of concern, and if so, how?

Gordon, R. (2008). Sfgate. S.f. traffic noise risks health of 1 in 6. Retrieved from http://www.sfgate.com


Levy, J. I., Buonocore, J., J., Stackelberg, K., V. (2010). The public health costs of traffic congestion. A health risk assessment. Retrieved from http://www.transportationconstructioncoalition.org


Schor, E. (2009). La.streetsblog.org. Who report highlights global health risk of traffic. Retrieved from http://la.streetsblog.org