You are using an outdated browser. We suggest you update your browser for a better experience. Click here for update.
Close this notification.
Skip to main content Skip to search
Ontario Cancer Facts

Active Transportation Varies Regionally

Jan 2022

Highlights

 

  • During 2015 to 2017, approximately 20% of adults in Ontario reported using active transportation on most days of the week, with the use of active transport varying according to region.
  • Adults who use active transportation have higher overall physical activity levels, which can help lower the risk of certain cancers.
  • Support for active transportation has been included in government COVID-19 pandemic recovery plans.

 

An analysis by public health unit showed that in 2015 to 2017, the use of active transportation in Ontario varied regionally. It was most common in Toronto and Ottawa, and the least common in the following public health units: Windsor Essex County, Lambton and Elgin-St. Thomas, as well as Leeds, Grenville and Lanark District. Overall in Ontario, 19.2% of adults reported using active transportation on most (i.e., 4 or more) days of the week.

Active transportation is using your own power – for example walking or cycling – to get to places such as school, the bus stop, the shopping centre, work or to visit friends.

Regional variation in the use of active transportation is linked, in part, to geographic and economic factors that influence how people get to or from work. It is also linked to features in the built environment that increase active transportation, including:

  • schools, workplaces, stores and other destinations that are within walking or biking distance
  • roads, sidewalks and bike lanes that connect to these destinations and that are safe and easy to navigate
  • access to public transportation


Source: Canadian Community Health Survey, 2015–2017 (Statistics Canada)

Notes: Estimates are adjusted to the age distribution of the 2011 Canadian Standard population. Most days of the week is 4 or more days.

Percentage of adults (age 18 and older) who reported use of active transportation on most days of the week, by public health unit, 2015 to 2017 combined
Public Health Unit Percent Low 95% confidence interval High 95% confidence interval
Ontario 19.2 18.6 19.8
Algoma 17.3 13.8 20.8
Brant County 15.9 12.6 19.1
Chatham-Kent 16.0 11.5 20.5
Durham Region 15.8 13.4 18.2
Eastern Ontario 15.2 11.8 18.6
Elgin-St. Thomas 11.7 8.8 14.7
Grey Bruce 17.6 14.9 20.3
Haldimand-Norfolk 15.5 12.1 19.0
Haliburton, Kawartha, Pine Ridge District 17.7 14.3 21.2
Halton Region 14.2 12.1 16.4
Hamilton 19.7 16.7 22.7
Hastings and Prince Edward Counties 13.9 10.7 17.2
Huron County 16.2 12.1 20.4
Kingston, Frontenac and Lennox & Addington 18.7 15.4 22.1
Lambton 11.2 8.5 13.9
Leeds, Grenville and Lanark District 11.8 8.4 15.2
Middlesex-London 18.7 15.7 21.8
Niagara Region 14.4 11.4 17.3
North Bay Parry Sound District 15.6 12.5 18.6
Northwestern 15.6 11.2 20.1
Ottawa 24.3 21.9 26.6
Oxford County 14.6 11.1 18.2
Peel 17.3 15.0 19.5
Perth District 21.5 17.3 25.6
Peterborough County-City 15.5 12.4 18.5
Porcupine 16.8 11.8 21.7
Region of Waterloo 17.4 14.9 19.9
Renfrew County and District 14.2 10.6 17.9
Simcoe Muskoka District 14.5 11.7 17.3
Sudbury and District 15.1 12.2 17.9
Thunder Bay District 14.1 11.4 16.8
Timiskaming 17.2 12.0 22.3
Toronto 28.1 26.1 30.1
Wellington-Dufferin-Guelph 16.5 13.7 19.2
Windsor-Essex County 10.9 8.6 13.3
York Region 15.9 13.7 18.1

Source: Canadian Community Health Survey, 2015–2017 (Statistics Canada)

Notes: Estimates are adjusted to the age distribution of the 2011 Canadian Standard population. Most days of the week is 4 or more days.

People who use active transportation report higher levels of overall physical activity. A study found that Canadians who lived in walkable neighbourhoods were more physically active. Physical activity is associated with a reduced risk of colon cancer, and is likely associated with a reduced risk of post-menopausal breast cancer and endometrial cancer.

Public health measures implemented during the COVID-19 pandemic have affected work and transportation patterns in Ontario. The autumn 2020 Canadian Community Health Survey found that people who worked from home due to the pandemic reported 40.7 daily minutes of physical activity, while other workers reported 49.8 daily minutes of physical activity. The decrease in physical activity among people who worked from home was partially due to a decrease in active transportation.

The governments of Canada and Ontario have incorporated active transportation planning into pandemic recovery plans. In July 2021, the federal government launched Canada’s National Active Transportation Strategy and the Active Transportation Fund. In August 2021, the Ontario government announced federal and provincial investment in active transportation infrastructure to support the building and maintenance of trails, bike paths and sidewalks in Ontario.

It is not yet known if changes in physical activity, work and transportation patterns will continue beyond the pandemic. New infrastructure and a focus on active transportation may lead to increased physical activity in the province and nationally.

Read more about policies and programs that foster active transportation and physical activity in the Prevention System Quality Index 2020 report.

If you have comments or questions, please send us an email.

References

  1. Community Preventive Services Task Force. Physical activity: built environment approaches combining transportation system interventions with land use and environmental design. Atlanta, GA: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention; 2016.
  2. Smith M, Hosking J, Woodward A, Witten K, MacMillan A, Field A, et al. Systematic literature review of built environment effects on physical activity and active transport – an update and new findings on health equity. Int J Behav Nutr Phys Act. 2017;14(1):158.
  3. Larouche R, Saunders TJ, Faulkner G, Colley R, Tremblay M. Associations between active school transport and physical activity, body composition, and cardiovascular fitness: a systematic review of 68 studies. J Phys Act Health. 2014;11(1):206-27.
  4. Schoeppe S, Duncan MJ, Badland H, Oliver M, Curtis C. Associations of children's independent mobility and active travel with physical activity, sedentary behaviour and weight status: a systematic review. J Sci Med Sport. 2013;16(4):312-9.
  5. Wanner M, Gotschi T, Martin-Diener E, Kahlmeier S, Martin BW. Active transport, physical activity, and body weight in adults: a systematic review. Am J Prev Med. 2012;42(5):493-502.
  6. Thielman J, Manson H, Chiu M, Copes R, Rosella LC. Residents of highly walkable neighbourhoods in Canadian urban areas do substantially more physical activity: a cross-sectional analysis. CMAJ Open. 2016;4(4):E720-E8.
  7. World Cancer Research Fund. Physical activity and the risk of cancer [Internet]. London: World Cancer Research Fund; 2018 [cited 2019 Dec 4]. Available from: https://www.wcrf.org/dietandcancer/exposures/physical-activity.
  8. Watt J and Colley RC. Youth—but not adults—reported less physical activity during the COVID-19 pandemic. StatCan COVID-19: Data to Insights for a Better Canada. Statistics Canada Catalogue no. 45-28-0001. Ottawa: Statistics Canada; 2021. Available from: https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/n1/pub/45-28-0001/2021001/article/00032-eng.htm
  9. Infrastructure Canada. Active Transportation Fund [Internet]. Ottawa: Government of Canada; 2021 [cited 2021 Oct 15]. Available from: https://www.infrastructure.gc.ca/trans/active-actif-eng.html
  10. Government of Ontario. News release – Canada and Ontario invest more than $2.1 million in active transportation infrastructure to respond to the impacts of COVID-19 [Internet]. Toronto: Government of Ontario; 2021 [cited 2021 Oct 15]. Available from: https://news.ontario.ca/en/release/1000685/canada-and-ontario-invest-more-than-21-million-in-active-transportation-infrastructure-to-respond-to-the-impacts-of-covid-19