School of Public Health, Level 6, The Charles Perkins Centre, University of Sydney, Sydney, New South Wales, 2006, Australia.
School of Public Health and Preventive Medicine, Monash University, 553 St Kilda Rd, Melbourne, Victoria, 3004, Australia.
Int J Behav Nutr Phys Act. 2019 Aug 1;16(1):59. doi: 10.1186/s12966-019-0823-4.
The built environment is reported to influence physical activity in populations, but longitudinal evidence about the impact of building new physical activity infrastructure is limited. This study aimed to prospectively investigate the uptake and usage of the newly established Peninsula Aquatic and Recreation Centre (PARC), a large multi-purpose recreation facility in Melbourne, Australia.
Physically inactive adults (n = 549) from the City of Frankston were recruited before the opening of PARC and followed up 12 months later to measure frequency of attendance at the Centre, and the purposes and barriers to use. Multivariable methods were used to identity the demographic, cognitive and social predictors of attendance, and the relationship between PARC use and improvements in leisure-time physical activity.
Over 12 months 8.7% of the sampled residents used PARC once per month or more, 17.5% attended less than once per month, and 73.8% did not use the Centre. Lap swimming was the dominant purpose for attendance, and the major barriers were cost of transport and cost of entry. Independent predictors of usage were being female, having children, living within 5 km of the Centre, and expressing strong intentions for use prior to its opening. Use of PARC was not associated with progression to a higher level of total leisure-time physical activity.
While installation of multi-purpose aquatic and recreation facilities may be considered an investment towards physical activity in populations, regular use by inactive people is likely to be low. Strategies to reduce barriers, including cost and transport, and to motivate use should be trialled in order to improve the public health impacts of this form of infrastructure.
据报道，建筑环境会影响人群的身体活动，但关于新建身体活动基础设施的影响的纵向证据有限。本研究旨在前瞻性调查新建立的半岛水上和娱乐中心（PARC）的使用情况，PARC 是澳大利亚墨尔本的一个大型多用途娱乐设施。
在 PARC 开业前，从弗兰克斯顿市招募了不活跃的成年人（n=549），并在 12 个月后进行随访，以衡量他们在中心的出席频率以及使用的目的和障碍。采用多变量方法确定出席的人口统计学、认知和社会预测因素，以及 PARC 使用与休闲时间身体活动改善之间的关系。
在 12 个月内，抽样居民中有 8.7%的人每月或更多次使用 PARC，17.5%的人每月使用次数少于一次，73.8%的人不使用该中心。游泳是主要的出席目的，主要障碍是交通成本和入场费。使用的独立预测因素包括女性、有孩子、居住在中心 5 公里以内，以及在其开放之前表达强烈的使用意图。PARC 的使用与向更高水平的总休闲时间身体活动的进展无关。
虽然安装多用途水上和娱乐设施可以被认为是对人群身体活动的一种投资，但不活跃人群的定期使用可能很低。应尝试减少障碍的策略，包括成本和交通，并激励使用，以提高这种基础设施的公共卫生影响。
