Urban Greening and Active Mobility Could Save Thousands of Lives Annually, Study Finds

A new Santé Publique France study highlights the significant health benefits of urban policies targeting green spaces, active transportation, air quality, noise, and heat reduction.

• Increasing urban green spaces could reduce mortality rates by 3% to 7%, saving hundreds of lives annually across major French cities like Lille, Montpellier, and Rouen.
• Encouraging active mobility, such as walking and cycling, could prevent 100 to 600 deaths per year depending on the city and activity levels.
• Meeting WHO air quality standards for fine particulate matter (PM2.5) could lower annual mortality by 7% to 12%, equating to 300 to 1,000 fewer deaths per city.
• Reducing transport noise levels to WHO-recommended thresholds would improve sleep for thousands and prevent 20 to 90 cardiovascular-related hospitalizations annually.
• Urban heat mitigation measures could address heat-related mortality, which currently accounts for 35 to 90 deaths each summer in the studied metropolitan areas.

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L'Humanité Sud Ouest Le Parisien