IntroductionThis past summer a new trail, part of the Trout Run Trail

project, was put into place that effectively bypasses Highway 9 to connect downtown Decorah to the Wal-Mart business

park and businesses in Freeport (Figures 2 and 3). This trail has many positive attributes. It is well kept by the city of

Decorah, kept clean of debris and snow. Further, it eliminates the danger of riding or walking on highway 9, the only other means to traverse a river and some distance to Freeport. The trail at this point ends near Wal-Mart, but it is intended to be

extended towards Freeport in the near future. This trail offers an effective means of transport for employees traveling from

Decorah or surrounding area to Freeport.

Determining the Efficacy of Sidewalks and Trails for Employees Workingat Local Businesses in Close Proximity to a Walkable Path

Luther CollegeDecember 2008

Psychology of Health and IllnessStudy by Zukiswa Mpande, Michael Lancaster,

Christopher Nevala-Plagemann and Karl Gilbertson with assistance by Dr. Loren Toussaint

MethodsOur study surveyed 300 workers at a local aerospace-manufacturing plant. The site is located in Freeport, a

community about 1 mile from the current end of Trout Run Trail (Figure 2). Subjects were given a short, 11 question

survey asking questions related to their knowledge and or use of the trail for daily work transit. Apart from background

information, one section of the survey dealt with a stages of change model for usage of the trail to their business. Another section focused on declared barriers, investigating why people

did or did not utilize the Trout Run Trail. The survey was administered to the subjects on Thursday the 20th of

November, 2008 at the manufacturing site where all the employees had already gathered for a purpose other than

taking this survey.

ResultsOur hypothesis stated that Trout Run Trail should be moderately to heavily used by employees going to work. After analyzing the data, we soon realized that, using the transtheoretical model for change, the employees that we surveyed were not at all disposed towards using the trail nor were planning to use it in the future for traveling to work. Curiously, only 1 survey in 195 claimed to use the trail. The most usable data were the responses to how far a subject would be willing to walk to their business. This data is displayed in Figure 1. In addition, we found that the average practical walking distance as reported by the employees was 3.7 miles.

DiscussionIn response to our hypothesis, the data shows that

virtually no employee at Rockwell Collins utilizes the Trout Run Trail in order to get to work. This directly contradicts

our hypothesis. Though nearly every responder indicated an awareness of the trail, only one subject claimed to use it on a regular basis to get to Rockwell Collins. The data from the

first 4 questions indicates that 99% of employees at Rockwell Collins are in the precontemplation stage of the

Transtheoretical Stages of Change model. This means that though all of them are aware of the availability of the trail,

none have indicated they have any intention of using it to or from work.

Our research focus shifted towards looking at the distance barrier, which proved to be quite interesting. Out of just under 200 surveys a majority of them, most of them women, declared distance to be the barrier that kept their

trail usage to a minimum or nil. On average, subjects responded saying that the maximum distance that they would willingly walk or bike to work was 3.7 miles.

Knowing this, it might indicate that trails that go straight to their destination will be more effective and used by

employees than scenic trails that meander towards their destination.

Preferred Walking Distances for Workers at Rockwell Collins

0

2

4

6

8

10

12

14

0 10 20 30 40Distance in Miles

Number of Responses

ObjectiveTo determine the extent of and possible barriers to use of Trout

Run Trail for employees of local businesses.

HypothesisOur initial assumption was that the Trout Run Trail would

be moderately to heavily utilized by employees on their commute to and from work. The fact that it was in great condition and

bypassed a major danger to walkers and bikers encouraged this hypothesis. Finally, the close proximity of the trail to Decorah

and local businesses made it seem an ideal alternative to driving.

SourcesDaniels, Stephen R. "The Consequences of Childhood Overweight and Obesity." The Future of Children

childhood obesity 16 (2006): 47-67. JSTOR. 3 Dec. 2008 <http://www.jstor.org/stable/3556550>.

Fiol, Marlene C., and Edward J. O'Connor. "When Hot and Cold Collide in Radical Change Processes: Lessons from Community Development." Organization Science 13 (2002): 532-46. JSTOR. 30 Oct. 2008

<http://www.jstor.org/stable/3086076>.

Hayne, Cheryl L., Patricia A. Moran, and Mary M. Ford. "Regulating Environments to Reduce Obesity." Journal of Public Health Policy 25 (2004): 391-407. JSTOR. 3 Dec. 2008

<http://www.jstor.org/stable/3343497>.

Sander, Beate, and Rito Bergemann. "Economic Burden of Obesity and Its Complications in Germany." The European Journal of Health Economics 4 (2003): 248-53. JSTOR. 3 Dec. 2008

<http://www.jstor.org/stable/3569935>.

Wolk, Alicja, Gloria Gridley, Malin Svensson, Olof Nyren, Joseph McLaughlin, Joseph F. Fraumeni, and Hans-Olov Adami. "A Prospective Study of Obesity and Cancer Risk (Sweden)." Cancer Causes & Control

12 (2001): 13-21. JSTOR. 2 Dec. 2008 <http://www.jstor.org/stable/3554084>.

Toussaint, Loren. Lecture.

Figure 2

Figure 1

Figu

re 3