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Urban landscape and street-design factors associated with road-traffic mortality in Latin America between 2010 and 2016 (SALURBAL): an ecological study
Journal article   Open access

Urban landscape and street-design factors associated with road-traffic mortality in Latin America between 2010 and 2016 (SALURBAL): an ecological study

D. Alex Quistberg, Philipp Hessel, Daniel A. Rodriguez, Olga L. Sarmiento, Usama Bilal, Waleska Teixeira Caiaffa, J. Jaime Miranda, Maria de Fatima de Pina, Akram Hernandez-Vasquez and Ana V. Diez Roux
The Lancet. Planetary health, v 6(2), pp E122-E131
01 Feb 2022
PMID: 35150622
Featured in Collection :   UN Sustainable Development Goals @ Drexel
url
https://doi.org/10.1016/s2542-5196(21)00323-5View
Published, Version of Record (VoR)CC BY V4.0 Open
url
https://doi.org/10.1016/S2542-5196(21)00323-5View
Published, Version of Record (VoR) Open

Abstract

Environmental Sciences Environmental Sciences & Ecology Life Sciences & Biomedicine Public, Environmental & Occupational Health Science & Technology
Background Road-traffic injuries are a key cause of death and disability in low-income and middle-income countries, but the effect of city characteristics on road-traffic mortality is unknown in these countries. The aim of this study was to determine associations between city-level built environment factors and road-traffic mortality in large Latin American cities. Methods We selected cities from Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Mexico, Panama, and Peru; cities included in the analysis had a population of at least 100 000 people. We extracted data for road-traffic deaths that occurred between 2010 and 2016 from country vital registries. Deaths were grouped by 5-year age groups and sex. Road-traffic deaths were identified using ICD-10 codes, with adjustments for ill-defined codes and incomplete registration. City-level measures included population, urban development, street design, public transportation, and social environment. Associations were estimated using multilevel negative binomial models with robust variances. Findings 366 cities were included in the analysis. There were 328408 road-traffic deaths in nearly 3.5 billion person-years across all countries, with an average crude rate of 17.1 deaths per 100000 person-years. Nearly half of the people who died were younger than 35 years. In multivariable models, road-traffic mortality was higher in cities where urban development was more isolated (rate ratio [RR] 1.05 per 1 SD increase, 95% CI 1-02-1.09), but lower in cities with higher population density (0-94,0-90-0-98), higher gross domestic product per capita (0.96, 0. 94-0-98), and higher intersection density (0.92,0.89-0-95). Cities with mass transit had lower road mortality rates than did those without (0.92, 0.86-0.99). Interpretation Urban development policies that reduce isolated and disconnected urban development and that promote walkable street networks and public transport could be important strategies to reduce road-traffic deaths in Latin America and elsewhere. (C) 2022 The Author(s). Published by Elsevier Ltd.

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Web of Science research areas
Environmental Sciences
Public, Environmental & Occupational Health
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