Perspectives on COVID-19 from a Transportation Planner

There is a lot of misinformation about the novel coronavirus, and the crisis has been overly politicized.  Responses by governments have been fragmented and uncoordinated.  Many bad decisions have been made, and many bad decisions will continue to be made.  My two engineering degrees are in the area of civil systems analysis, and I can find no systems thinking in any of the governmental actions so far.  My other degree is in planning, and what little epidemic planning I can discern has shown to be woefully inadequate.  At this writing just about all decision making related to the pandemic is impulsive and reactive. 

There is a lot of hysteria out there. I see it in stores; I hear it from friends and relatives.  I am able to be somewhat more circumspect than many, since I am a COVID-19 survivor.  From news reports, I figured I was the 12^th confirmed case of COVID-19 in Wisconsin and I was the first person here to have been cleared.  My symptoms were quite mild, masked by a drug reaction I was experiencing at the time, but my wife, Shirley, was slammed rather hard.  She has recovered, but her recovery period was much longer than mine. 

The reason for my mild symptoms at my advanced age is a guess.  It could have been dumb luck.  Slightly more likely, it might have had to do with the anti-malarial drug I had been taking for a while after my return from Kenya and during the possible front end my illness.  Even more likely was my rather good cardio conditioning (see note below) for an old guy (I am 72).  As it turns out, my anti-malarial drug, not the one touted by our President, has strong antiviral properties.  Few people knew or cared.  Researchers are now looking closely at this drug, but its efficacy remains unproven for COVID-19.  What has been proven is that people in good physical health have better outcomes than people in poor health.  At the time I was tested for COVID-19 my blood oxygen level was 100%. 

People are dying in large numbers because they do not have the stamina to cope with COVID-19.  This is where us transportation professionals can contribute the most. 

Now is the time to push very hard for more progress in nonmotorized transportation.  We need enough sidewalks, multi-use trails, bike lanes, and safe pavements for people to travel just about anywhere by walking, cycling, skate boards, or roller skates. (Look below for a personal story about the need for safe pavements for cyclists.)  We need neighborhoods that are safe and comfortable for walking. Most people are busy, and they need all the help they can get to lead healthy life styles.  We need facilities (lockers, showers, and secure storage areas) at workplaces to encourage rigorous physical activity. 

We often pay lip service to the cycling community in our long-range transportation plans.  We need to expand those sections of plans, accelerate their implementation, and take them seriously. 

As planners we must push for better epidemic planning, to the extent we can. 

For you personally, at the minimum, please follow an exercise routine suggested by the American Heart Association of “150 minutes per week of moderate-intensity aerobic activity or 75 minutes per week of vigorous aerobic activity, or a combination of both” spread throughout each week.  Even if you have tried before and were unsuccessful, this pandemic should give you further motivation.  Start losing those pounds you promised yourself you would lose.  You must exercise like your life depends on it, because it does. 

(See Shirley’s weight loss story below.) 

Stay well. 

Alan Horowitz, Whitefish Bay, April 1, 2020 

Note on Alan’s workout:  I do 1 full hour of stationary bike riding each day, with resistances equivalent to climbing continuously uphill at grades between +2% to +5%.  (It took me almost 2 years to get to this point, so don’t try to do it yourself without consulting with a trainer and/or doctor.)  I will skip all or some of the stationary bike riding on days I can do a long bike ride outside.  I also do strength training, mostly upper body, on 11 different weight machines, about 2 to 3 times a week.  I always do 2 sets for each muscle group:  a warm-up set of 10 reps at 67% weight, then a final set of as many reps as possible (usually 12 to 24) at full weight.  The strength training goes fast – maybe 40-45 minutes.  When my health club re-opens, I will likely need to drop down a plate or two on all the machines, since I have not lifted anything heavy since I traveled to Kenya at the beginning of February.  My body weight is the same as when I was a senior in college.  I am not an advocate of extreme thinness; people my age should retain enough body fat to sustain them through a prolonged illness.  My BMI is 23. 

Why Alan wants safe pavements for cyclists:  On August 8, 2016, I hit a pothole while I was cycling downhill.  I fell and crushed my right shoulder.  The cost of fixing the pothole:  maybe $10.  The retail cost of my medical care:  maybe $50,000.  I spent 4 days hospitalized and another 9 months in physical therapy.  Cyclists need good pavements.  Incidentally, I was wearing a helmet; otherwise, I would not be writing this blog post right now. 

Shirley’s weight loss story:  Shirley had a weight-loss goal that she wasn’t achieving.  Then she got COVID-19.  Shirley could not eat solid food for two full weeks.  She lost that weight.  This is not a recommended method.