Temporal changes in active commuting from 2007 to 2017 among adults living in the Capital Region of Denmark

Background: The health benefits of active commuting are well established, but little is known about the temporal changes in active commuting across sociodemographic groups. Aim: To examine temporal changes in active commuting in the Capital Region of Denmark from 2007 to 2017 and to examine whether these changes differed across gender, age, educational attainment, BMI, distance to work/educational institution, and place of residence. Method: The study was based on four waves of “The Danish Capital Region Health Survey (DK-CRHS)” conducted in 2007, 2010, 2013 and 2017. The pooled study sample included 102.792 individuals aged 25–79 years old. Results: From 2007-2017 the overall prevalence of active commuters increased from 71.8% to 76.4%. Also, the Odds Ratio (OR) of being an active commuter increased significantly among men, individuals aged 25–34 and 35–44 years of age, all educational attainment groups, all BMI groups except BMI <18.5 kg/m², all groups of distance to work/education >5 km, and in all groups by place of residence (urban, suburban and rural). Survey year modified the effect of gender, age, educational attainment, distance to work/education, and place of residence, but not the effect of BMI on the probability of being an active commuter. Conclusion: Active commuting has become more prevalent among adults living in the Capital Region of Denmark, but temporal changes from 2007 to 2017 differed between sociodemographic groups. Findings may help inform future planning and policymaking to secure targeted interventions for continuous promotion of active commuting across all sociodemographic groups.