Kingston residents will be asked about their use of active transportation—from riding their bike to work, walking their children to school, or rollerblading to the corner store—in a telephone survey being conducted by KFL&A Public Health and the Kingston Coalition for Active Transportation (KCAT) beginning again tomorrow. Active transportation is defined by the Public Health Agency of Canada as any form of human powered transportation used to travel from one destination to another. The survey was also conducted in May and October of 2009, and will also be conducted again this summer to compare people’s use of active transportation in the spring, fall, and summer. The surveys will help local agencies plan services around active transportation.

“While participation is voluntary, the cooperation of Kingston residents who receive phone calls to participate in the survey is extremely appreciated. It will provide the KFL&A Public Health and KCAT with information that can help increase active transportation opportunities in our city,” said Anne MacPhail, co-chair of KCAT.

Approximately 350 randomly selected Kingston residents will be asked about their use of active transportation and about things that encourage them or prevent them from using active transportation. CCI Research Inc., a Canadian-based survey company, will carry out the telephone survey on behalf of KFL&A Public Health starting mid July and extending into early August. The survey is confidential and received approval from Queen’s University Health Sciences Research Ethics Board.