Redlining and Neighborhood Walking in Older Adults: The 2017 National Household Travel Survey

Introduction: In the 1930s, Black, working-class, and immigrant neighborhoods were color coded on maps (i.e., redlining) indicating investment risk, which negatively impacted mortgage attainment/homeownership for these groups and led to long-standing segregation by race/ethnicity and socioeconomic status. Limited studies have investigated the health impacts of redlining, particularly among older adults who tend to stay closer to their residences. This study examines whether older adults in historically redlined neighborhoods report less neighborhood walking and whether associations vary by race/ethnicity and income.

Methods: The sample included 4,651 individuals aged ≥65 years from the 2017 U.S. National Household Travel Survey. U.S. Census tract‒based redlining scores were 1=best, 2=still desirable, 3=definitely declining, and 4=hazardous. Multivariable negative binomial regression tested the associations between redlining and neighborhood walking/day in the overall sample and with stratification by poverty status (analyzed in 2022).

Results: Participants were on average aged 73 years, and 11% were African/American Black, 75% were White, 8% were Hispanic/Latinx, and 6% were of other race/ethnicity. Participants reported a mean of 7.1 neighborhood walking minutes/day (SD=20.6), and 60% lived in definitely declining or hazardous neighborhoods. Individuals in hazardous neighborhoods (versus those in best neighborhoods) reported less neighborhood walking (prevalence ratio=0.64; 95% CI=0.43, 0.97). Among those living in poverty, living in definitely declining and hazardous neighborhoods was associated with less neighborhood walking (prevalence ratio=0.39 [95% CI=0.20, 0.79] and 0.39 [95% CI=0.18, 0.82], respectively).

Conclusions: Less neighborhood walking was reported among individuals living in neighborhoods with a historic redlining score of definitely declining or hazardous. Future studies using larger, more diverse cohorts may elucidate whether associations differ by race/ethnicity and geographic location/city.