University of Maine Walkability/Bikeability Audit

The focus of this study was to assess and grade the walkability/bikeability paths in a 1.5 mile radius around the University of Maine campus. This project was part of a 14-state study, Get Fruved, a USDA funded project for health promotion on college campuses. At UMaine, 4 student researchers conducted an environmental audit on 39 paths (75% in the day, 25% at night), selected by a campus committee as most frequently used walking/biking paths. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s Healthier Worksite Initiative Walkability Audit was used to assess paths for suitable walking surfaces, traffic conflict potential, presence of crosswalks, presence of light sources at night, maintenance, path size, buffer from roadway, wheelchair accessibility, aesthetics, presence of designated bike lanes, terrain, and adequacy of bike racks available. Students met inter-rater reliability of ≥80% for agreement in scoring prior to conducting the audit. Data were collected onsite and entered online into a Qualtrics survey using Flex 8” 16GB tablets. Analyses were completed at Syracuse University by the lead investigator for the multistate team. Total scores (1-100 possible) ranged from 60.13-79.78. The low score was for UMaine which was statistically different from two of the other 13 schools (P=0.0001). Of the assessed paths, 25% were scored in the poor range and the UMaine grade was a C. These findings could be used by facilities personnel to improve paths to support health-promoting lifestyles.

Faculty Mentor: Adrienne White