Primary Submission Category: Health equity
Beyond Census Tracts: A GIS and Mobility Data Framework for Enhanced Measurement of Healthy Food Access and Environmental Exposures
Authors: Mengya Xu, John P. Wilson, Kayla de la Haye,
Presenting Author: Mengya Xu*
Introduction: Chronic diseases such as obesity are significantly influenced by diet, which depends partly on the accessibility of healthy foods. Traditional assessments of food access often neglect the nuances of individual travel patterns, shopping behaviors, and transportation methods. Such assessments, constrained by static administrative boundaries like census tracts, fail to capture the dynamic nature of environmental exposures.
Methods: This study introduces a comprehensive analytical framework integrating the “15-minute city” urban planning concept, and an activity space perspective, utilizing GPS mobility data and GIS analytics. We evaluate access to essential food retailers across various transportation modes—walking, public transit, and driving—at the household level and within residents’ neighborhoods. Our approach includes a novel method to examine grocery shopping behaviors in dynamic activity spaces, shedding light on the interplay between food environments, mobility patterns, and socioeconomic characteristics.
Results: Our findings suggest that the distribution of healthy food stores does not consistently bypass socioeconomically disadvantaged communities. Public transit appears to enhance grocery store access mainly in areas with pre-existing walkable options, with limited effectiveness in regions lacking basic food access. Analysis based on mobility data shows that increased grocery visits correlate with neighborhoods having higher proportions of Hispanic populations, renters, and foreign-born residents, alongside a greater availability of grocery stores.
Conclusion: Our findings underscore the importance of GIS-based analytical methods in understanding grocery store utilization and influencing factors. These insights are crucial for targeted improvements in public transit and urban policies, aiming to bridge gaps in food access and ensure more equitable availability of healthy food options across all communities.