ArticleBMJ open2017
Does public transport use prevent declines in walking speed among older adults living in England? A prospective cohort study.
Article in BMJ open, 2017. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 6 papers.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
6 citing papers in PubMed.
- Can electric-powered carts used in public transportation change long-term care risk among older adults?: evidence from a 2-year follow-up survey.Archives of public health = Archives belges de sante publique · 2026Article
- Public transport use cessation and age-related functional decline: a quasi-causal analysis using the English longitudinal study of ageing.BMC public health · 2026Article
- The association between community-based transportation use and depressive symptoms among older adults in Japan.Discover mental health · 2026Article
- Longitudinal association of built environment pattern with DXA-derived body fat in elderly Hong Kong Chinese: a latent profile analysis.International journal of obesity (2005) · 2021Article
- Exploring changes in active travel uptake and cessation across the lifespan: Longitudinal evidence from the UK Household Longitudinal Survey.Preventive medicine reports · 2019Article
- Green and blue spaces and physical functioning in older adults: Longitudinal analyses of the Whitehall II study.Environment international · 2019Article
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
3 authors.
Funding
Abstract
objectivesAlthough there is some evidence that public transport use confers public health benefits, the evidence is limited by cross-sectional study designs and health-related confounding factors. This study examines the effect of public transport use on changes in walking speed among older adults living in England, comparing frequent users of public transport to their peers who did not use public transport because of structural barriers (poor public transport infrastructure) or through choice.
designProspective cohort study.
settingEngland, UK.
participantsOlder adults aged ≥60 years eligible for the walking speed test. 6246 individuals at wave 2 (2004-2005); 5909 individuals at wave 3 (2006-2007); 7321 individuals at wave 4 (2008-2009); 7535 individuals at wave 5 (2010-2011) and 7664 individuals at wave 6 (2012-2013) of the English Longitudinal Study of Ageing.
main outcome measureThe walking speed was estimated from the time taken to walk 2.4 m. Fixed effects models and growth curve models were used to examine the associations between public transport use and walking speed.
resultsOlder adults who did not use public transport through choice or because of structural reasons had slower walking speeds (-0.02 m/s (95% CI -0.03 to -0.003) and -0.02 m/s (95% CI -0.03 to -0.01), respectively) and took an extra 0.07 s to walk 2.4 m compared with their peers who used public transport frequently. The age-related trajectories of decline in walking speed were slower for frequent users of public transport compared with non-users.
conclusionsFrequent use of public transport may prevent age-related decline in physical capability by promoting physical activity and lower limb muscle strength among older adults. The association between public transport use and slower decline in walking speed among older adults is unlikely to be confounded by health-related selection factors. Improving access to good quality public transport could improve the health of older adults.
Indexed as
Identifiers
What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.