Boston citizen friendly infrastructure
Credit: Lisa Poole/AP

Big cities are usually associated with cramped spaces, polluted air, and clogged up roads. But on the other hand, joggers, cyclists, and urban parks are also a ubiquitous element in cities.

Those contradictory factors are the reason why residents in big cities are healthier when comparing 48 medium to large cities against each other, a new survey released by Gallup and Healthways on Tuesday says, part of its State of American Well-Being series. The presence of infrastructure in these cities promote active living, thus improving residents’ overall well-being and happiness.

“Policies that nudge people into healthy activities – where it is easy to walk to the store, bike to a friend’s house, get access to fresh produce and be surrounded by healthy-minded, supportive friends – are ones that make the healthy choice the easy choice,” Dan Buettner, founder of the Healhways Blue Zones Project, said in the report. “Sustained transformation depends on building an environment and establishing social policies that support […]