Health Economic Assessment Tool (HEAT) for cycling and walking is an online tool to estimate the value of reduced mortality that results from regular walking or cycling.

HEAT is intended to be part of comprehensive cost–benefit analyses of transport interventions or infrastructure projects. It complements existing tools for economic valuations of transport interventions and can also be used to assess the current situation or past investment. The tool is based on best available evidence, with parameters that can be adapted to fit specific situations. Default parameters are valid for the European context.

HEAT can be applied in many situations, for example:

• to plan a new piece of cycling or walking infrastructure: it models the impact of different levels of cycling or walking, and attaches a value to the estimated level when the new infrastructure is in place;
• to value the mortality benefits from current levels of cycling or walking, such as benefits from cycling or walking to a specific workplace, across a city or in a country;
• to provide input into more comprehensive cost–benefit analyses, or prospective health impact assessments: for instance, to estimate the mortality benefits from achieving national targets to increase cycling or walking, or to illustrate potential cost consequences of a decline in current levels of cycling or walking.

Key questions addressed:

• What are the economic benefits of walking or cycling based on the reduced morality rate?

Sample data inputs:

• Number of people walking or cycling
• Average time spent walking or cycling in the study population (duration, distance, number of trips)

Sample quantitative outputs:

• Number of deaths per year prevented
• Economic value of the activity on the population

Access the Health Economic Assessment Tool (HEAT) for cycling and walking.

Resources:

Methods and user guide.

Case studies are listed here.