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Comment by hodgesrm | Hacker News Reader

> Even today we are pumping so many toxins in to the air to deliver a slower, less efficient, and more expensive form of transport.

Slower than what?

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Walkable cities + public transport. When I had a car it used to take me a minimum of 10 minutes to get anywhere. Cars have spaced out everything so far that over all we spend so much more time traveling. Now I live in a walkable area and almost everything I need is a few minutes away on foot, or a 20 minute train trip to the main city area.

I swear that living in NYC for nearly two decades has made me incapable of making a grocery list and shopping like pretty much everyone else in the country (only slightly kidding). I just walk down the street and grab what I need.

I did just miss the 6 train by 15 seconds and am standing on the platform as I write this, which I guess is annoying? I’ll take it over driving in traffic though.

Whenever I leave NYC and go anywhere else in the US, walking a mile feels like an act of silent rebellion.

Had a friend from Texas move near me in Australia and they have just been exhausted trying to keep up because they aren't used to walking. Walking here is the fastest and most convenient way to get around. By the time you get your car out and find parking, you could have already been there on foot.

You'll observe that the rate of obesity is extremely low in the walkable areas which I really think is heavily because the people there live more active lifestyles just getting around day to day.

The rate of obesity is low because of survivorship bias, nothing more, nothing less. For obese and/or disabled people, living in New York is an absolute nightmare if you can’t afford public transit.

Despite loving the city amenities, culture, nightlife, one of my family members had to give up and leave NYC because he couldn’t afford cabs everywhere and hated showing up to events late and sweat-soaked otherwise.

> The rate of obesity is low because of survivorship bias, nothing more, nothing less

You think the rate of obesity is not at all affected by the amount of walking?

You miss the point. People who want to walk and live that lifestyle live in New York. People that walking is painful for generally leave.

It’s like saying wearing bikinis on beaches seems to cause weight loss.

It's some of the effect, but absolutely not all. You said it's pure selection bias, no more, no less... That was your point.

I'm the same person, but the last place I lived I averaged 7k steps and now I average 4k steps. That clearly affects my level of health and weight.

> For obese and/or disabled people, living in New York is an absolute nightmare if you can’t afford public transit.

Obesity has increased in recent years as people from all walks of life exercise less and eat out more.

Even when adjusting for poverty and race, studies have shown that close access to parks and other walkable areas, combined with good public transport, reduces prevalance of obesity.

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