Evidence map›Paper›PMID 31510986›Full record

ArticleBMC public health2019

Holding the keys to health? A scoping study of the population health impacts of automated vehicles.

Jennifer Dean, Alexander J Wray, Lucas Braun, Jeffrey M Casello, Lindsay McCallum, Stephanie Gower

Abstract readScoping Review
PubMed Full text at PMC Publisher
In one paragraph

Article in BMC public health, 2019. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 4 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
4citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

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.

2 · The registry

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.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

4 citing papers in PubMed.

  1. Article
  2. Review
  3. Review
  4. Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

6 authors.

Jennifer DeanSchool of Planning, University of Waterloo, 200 University Avenue West, Waterloo, ON, N2L 3G1, Canada. jennifer.dean@uwaterloo.ca.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0003-2642-7638
Alexander J WrayHuman Environments Analysis Lab, Department of Geography, Western University, London, ON, Canada.
Lucas BraunDepartment of Civil and Environmental Engineering, University of Waterloo, 200 University Ave, West, Waterloo, ON, N2L 3G1, Canada.
Jeffrey M CaselloSchool of Planning, University of Waterloo, 200 University Avenue West, Waterloo, ON, N2L 3G1, Canada.
Lindsay McCallumToronto Public Health, 277 Victoria St., 7th Floor, Toronto, ON, M5B 1W2, Canada.
Stephanie GowerToronto Public Health, 277 Victoria St., 7th Floor, Toronto, ON, M5B 1W2, Canada.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundAutomated Vehicles (AVs) are central to the new mobility paradigm that promises to transform transportation systems and cities across the globe. To date, much of the research on AVs has focused on technological advancements with little emphasis on how this emerging technology will impact population-level health. This scoping study examines the potential health impacts of AVs based on the existing literature.

methodsUsing Arksey and O'Malley's scoping protocol, we searched academic and 'grey' literature to anticipate the effects of AVs on human health.

resultsOur search captured 43 information sources that discussed a least one of the five thematic areas related to health. The bulk of the evidence is related to road safety (n = 37), followed by a relatively equal distribution between social equity (n = 24), environment (n = 22), lifestyle (n = 20), and built environment (n = 18) themes. There is general agreement that AVs will improve road safety overall, thus reducing injuries and fatalities from human errors in operating motorized vehicles. However, the relationships with air quality, physical activity, and stress, among other health factors may be more complex. The broader health implications of AVs will be dependent on how the technology is adopted in various transportation systems. Regulatory action will be a significant determinant of how AVs could affect health, as well as how AVs influence social and environmental determinants of health.

conclusionTo support researchers and practitioners considering the health implications of AVs, we provide a conceptual map of the direct and indirect linkages between AV use and health outcomes. It is important that stakeholders, including public health agencies work to ensure that population health outcomes and equitable distribution of health impacts are priority considerations as regulators develop their response to AVs. We recommend that public health and transportation officials actively monitor trends in AV introduction and adoption, regulators focus on protecting human health and safety in AV implementation, and researchers work to expand the body of evidence surrounding AVs and population health.

Indexed as

AutomationPopulation HealthPublic HealthTransportationAir PollutionCitiesExerciseHumansAutomated vehiclesAutonomous vehiclesBuilt environmentDriverless carsHealth equityMobilityPublic healthRoad safetyScoping reviewTransportation planning

Identifiers

PMID31510986
PMCPMC6740025

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

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.