Barriers and facilitators to active transportation in people of color and people with disabilities: a rapid review

BackgroundActive transportation is a form of physical activity that enables mobility in one's community. Current data indicate that the most frequent users of active transportation in high-income countries are predominantly white men of higher socioeconomic status.AimThe purpose of this study was to understand the barriers and facilitators to active transportation among adults from three equity-deserving groups - people of color, people with disabilities, and people from the queer community.MethodsA systematic search of the literature was conducted using five databases: Ovid MEDLINE(R) ALL, EBSCOHost Sport Discus, ProQuest Sociological Abstracts, ProQuest Dissertations & Theses Global, and SCOPUS. Only studies conducted in Canada, the USA, Australia, New Zealand, and the UK were included given the distinct environment and culture of active transportation compared to other countries and continents.ResultsAfter removing duplicates, 704 articles were identified. Of these, seven met our inclusion criteria. Three papers focused on people of color and four papers focused on people with disabilities; no papers focused on the queer community. In people of color, a unique barrier to active transportation that was identified was English language proficiency. Among people with disabilities, a unique barrier to engaging in active transportation related to navigating shared zones in intersections.ConclusionThis review found that walkability, density, points of interest, and English proficiency are important factors that influence active transportation among people of color, while the physical environment and safety are important factors that affect active transportation among people with disabilities.