Traffic congestion and asthma-related hospital visits: evidence from Texas
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Technical Report
Abstract
Asthma is one of the most prevalent chronic conditions in the United States, particularly sensitive to environmental changes in urban areas. While traffic congestion is known to contribute to increased vehicle emissions and poorer air quality, its direct association with asthma incidence remains underexplored. This study aimed to address this void by analyzing 148 city-level observations from 2016 to 2020 in Texas, utilizing data from the Texas A&M Transportation Institute and Definitive Healthcare. This study investigated the association between traffic congestion, measured by the travel time index, and annual city-level asthma hospital discharges, while adjusting for refinery productivity, minority groups, and education levels through multivariate regression. The findings revealed a significant positive correlation between the travel time index and asthma visits, indicating that higher traffic congestion is associated with increased hospital visits for asthma. Additionally, higher refinery productivity was linked to elevated risks of asthma-related hospitalizations. Although correlations with Black or African American and Hispanic or Latino populations, as well as those with less than a high school education, were not statistically significant, a positive trend was observed. These results emphasize the impact of traffic congestion and industrial activities on asthma prevalence and the need for targeted public health interventions and urban planning strategies.