City councillors were given a healthy reminder of the impact of transport systems have on city populations before they began a workshop session to consider options for the Tauranga transport preferred business case.

Rebecca Culliford from Toi Te Ora Public Health spoke to Transport Committee members this week about the links between transport systems and population health, and how the current models are failing.

Speaking in the public forum, Rebecca drew parallels between congested transport and congested health systems.

'Congestion is a huge public concern for Tauranga, everybody suffers when the network doesn't function well and when it takes over we all suffer personal, economic, and social consequences,” says Rebecca.

'A similar congestion issue is rapidly developing in the health system, and all the same concerns apply.”

She says a congested health care system means long queues for cancer treatments, heart surgery, or emergency service and staff that tare overworked and in danger of making mistakes.

'Population ageing mixed with population growth will substantially increase demand on health care in future, potentially to an unsustainable level,” says Rebecca.

Health care only determines about 20 per cent of the population health. The other 80 per cent of health determinants are outside the impacts of the health sector.

Her argument is that a healthy transport system can keep a population healthier, and reduce the impact on the health system.

Thirty years ago only nine per cent of adults were obese compared to 32 per cent today. New Zealand obesity figures third highest behind only the USA and Mexico.

Obesity is the leading cause of early deaths, illness and disability after smoking, says Rebecca.

Isolation and loneliness which also result from a lack of public and active transport systems produce their own range of health issues; stroke, depression, Alzheimer's.

Statistics NZ found 15 per cent of people in the Bay of Plenty feel lonely some or all of the time.

People with lower incomes are reportedly more likely to experiences loneliness than people on higher incomes.

'A key influence in population health is transport,” says Rebecca. 'Access to transport is access to health and the figures that show people without access to transport are the poorer ones who suffer because of it.”

A car-oriented transport policy results in sprawling green field development and greater house hold costs, and also affects the young, says Rebecca.

Higher levels of independent mobility among school age children results in improved mental well-being.

'In New Zealand we have a substantial drop of independent mobility as indicated in the transport to school data,” says Rebecca.

It shows 57 per cent of school age children are driven to school. 29 per cent walk.

Rebecca calls for more investment into active and public transport modes, and commended the Tauranga City Council on its recently completed cycle and action plan.