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Mountains of research over the last several decades show that how we get around and how much physical activity we get are closely linked with the built environment of the neighborhoods where we live. This means that the health, economic, and environmental benefits associated with active travel and transit are place-based and that affordable housing in walkable, location efficient places needs to be thought of as a critical component of planners’ efforts to provide safe, healthy, and equitable transportation systems. This talk will provide an overview of the links between affordable housing and transportation planning and present research findings from a new national study of location efficiency within the Low-income Housing Tax Credit (LIHTC) program, the largest source of new affordable housing in the United States.

Arlie Adkins is an assistant professor of urban planning in the School of Landscape Architecture and Planning at the University of Arizona. His research focuses on understanding relationships between the built environment, active transportation, affordable housing, equity, and health. He has a PhD from Portland State University and a master’s degree in city planning from UC Berkeley. Dr. Adkins is currently a lead researcher on a multi-year CDC-funded project investigating barriers to active transportation in Mexican-American neighborhoods in Tucson, Arizona. He previously worked in the planning department at TriMet and at Flexcar.