a. background and purpose
Riding a bike by increasing physical activity can prevent chronic diseases such as cardiovascular diseases, stroke, overweight and obesity and also can enhance mental health by reducing depression symptoms. But at the same time, riding a bike may increase traffic accidents. HIA was conducted on the bicycle policy to polish it so that it could maximize its positive health impacts and to minimize its negative health impacts.
b. Major findings and recommendations
⧠ Positive impacts
－ increase of physical activity
－ weight control, improvement of the functions of heart and lung, muscular strength enhancement, stress/depression reduction, improvement in social health and sexual life
⧠ Negative impacts
－ may increase traffic accidents
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－ We could not find sufficient evidence that the bicycle policy had reduced air pollution.
⧠ Recommendations
○ Education policy
－ Focus on those who do not use a bike because they do not know how to ride it (e.g., women, the elderly).
－ Substantially increase the bike school for adolescents and develop education materials including how to use a bike and safety education each for elementary, middle, and high schoolers.
－ Utilize neighborhood meetings for community perception changes and safety education.
－ Develop a guide for riding a bike during the night and use it for education (e.g., adjustment of the night glow and the front light, enforcement of wearing a luminous shirt or vest during the night, enforcement of installing a blinker).
－ Support for the safety educations of bike clubs.
－ Instruct drivers on the behaviors of bike riders.
－ Recommend using a helmet.
⧠ Encouragement policy
－ Introduce lighter public bikes.
－ Free rental of boosters
－ Immediate fix of broken public bikes
－ Consider the provision of subsidy for purchasing a private bike.
－ Provide incentives to shoppers who visit a shopping center, e.g., free delivery of purchased items, price discounts, etc.
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－ Distribute information sheets on how to buy a good bike and strengths of using a bike at 'Nubija' stands and public places.
－ Strategically select communities, organizations, and institutes that are highly interested in biking and support them.
－ Free distributions of night glow shirts or vests
⧠ Engineering policy
－ Bike road improvements in the industrial complex area
－ Increase bike ways for leisure and related events.
－ Enforce public agencies to build bike stands; Make room for private bikes in the Nubija stands; building a shade at the Nubija stands.
－ Consider a fee parking lot for bikes as in Japan and Europe
－ Introduce a signal preventing all time right turns and make bike crossroads and bike signals.
－ Build greenways that connect a residence area and sport/leisure facilities.
－ Evaluate the biking environment of those paths connecting major starting point (residence areas) to various destinations and make a map.
－ Run demonstration bike paths.
－ Separate the bike way from the pedestrian way.
⧠ Enforcement policy
－ Define 'bike' in laws.
－ Limit the car speed in a road for both cars and bikes
－ Enforce illegal parks on a bike way.
－ Set up an ordinance for detailed rules on how to ride a bike.
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－ Academic evaluations are needed.
－ After three years of the implementation of the bicycle policy, economic evaluations may be needed.
－ Develop 'Evaluation Index for Bike Environment.'
⧠ Air quality policy
－ More direct policies such as the reduction of cars rather than indirect bike policy would be effective.
－ Make a master plan and specific objectives of air pollution reduction.
－ Monitor scientifically the extent of giving up a car for a bike.
⧠ Health policy
－ Distribute the results of the study conducted by the public health center.
－ Develop education materials on the positive health effects of a bicycle and the minimum amount of use of a bicycle to gain those positive health effects.
－ Consider a recumbent bicycle, a motor bicycle, and a hybrid bicycle for public bicycles.
3. Conclusions
The 2009 HIA project has completed five HIA demonstration projects in Healthy Cities. There were several successful factors in the 2009 HIA project. First, we have found that introducing HIA in Healthy Cities may be an effective approach and HIA can be a specific program for Healthy Cities. Second, the 2009 HIA project
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was an opportunity for us to let policy makers from sectors outside of the health sector know that their policies may affect health as well as the intended area. Third, it was found that HIA could help policy makers for their better decision. Fourth, many recommendations to improve the population health from HIA demonstration projects.
Despite the above successful factors, the 2009 HIA demonstration projects have a few limitations. First, the demonstration projects were implemented only in Healthy Cities and hence other cities interested in HIA were excluded. Second, the workshops for capacity building were provided only for the personnel for Healthy Cities program and no education or training programs for policy makers outside of the health sector were provided. Third, we did not assess the reliability of the evidence that was used in the appraisals. Fourth, we could have been more careful in selecting HIA subjects. One subject was the case that its health impacts had already been discussed and therefore additional benefits from HIA were difficult to extract. The other subject had few relevant evidence from which any reliable recommendations could be made.
We suggest that local governments should include HIA in the official system by an ordinance or an mayor's approval. Specifically, local governments should do HIA's on those policies or projects which are planned to be implemented the next year that may be important in light of the budget size and/or the impact size. Each HIA project should be conducted by the public health center and the relevant department and other stakeholders should be included in the steering committee. The HIA project team, however, may need to be consisted of experts from academia since the HIA capacity of civil servants may not be great for the time being. As for the HIA type,
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20 09 년 건 강영 향평 가시 스템 축 구 및 운 영 제 권2 강 건 영향 평가 범 시 사업
rapid HIA which requires relatively less resources and expertise is recommended.
Ministry of Health, Welfare, and Family Affairs can assist local governments to implement HIA in several ways. First, the Ministry can provide financial supports for HIA demonstration projects.
Second, the Ministry can support those Healthy Cities implementing HIA. Third, the Ministry can provide a legal base for HIA implementation by including HIA in the National Health Promotion Act or the Fundamental Law for Health Care.
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요약