MORE than a quarter of adults in Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole took a short walk less than once a month last year, figures suggest.

Amid changes to people's travel habits during lockdown, Sport England said a huge fall in walking for travel across England shows the "unprecedented" impact of the pandemic.

The organisation's annual Active Lives Survey asked 1,289 Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole residents between November 2019 and November 2020 how often they take a 10-minute walk, for either leisure or travel.

The results, published by the Department for Transport, show just 74 per cent walked at least once per month for any reason – down from 83 per cent the year before.

The proportion of people who walked for leisure once per month – recreation, health, competition, or training based – fell from 72 per cent to 66.

Similarly, the figure for walking to travel – such as commuting, visiting a friend, or going to the supermarket – fell significantly from 50 per cent to 35.

Lisa O’Keefe, director of insight at Sport England, said: “This reflects the unprecedented pandemic disruptions of that time.

“Anxiety about going out and catching or spreading the virus, financial fears, more responsibilities at home and lack of access to private outdoor space all contributed.”

Despite this, figures for Dorset as a county showed that the results for walking at least once per month was unchanged from the year before at 83 per cent.

Across England, the proportion of people who took a monthly stroll for any reason fell from 80 per cent to 75 over this period – the lowest since comparable records began in 2015-16.

Living Streets, a charity which supports everyday walking, said the pandemic has changed the way many of us live our lives.

Interim chief executive Stephen Edwards said: “It’s incredibly important that we keep active, both for our own wellbeing and to avoid storing up massive health problems for the NHS.

“Just a 20-minute walk can prevent long-term health conditions like type 2 diabetes, heart disease, certain cancers and depression.”

Also in Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole, 17 per cent of those asked said they rode their bike at least once every four weeks – compared to 19 per cent the year before.

Rachel White, public affairs head at Sustrans – a walking and cycling charity, called for regional authorities to invest in quality infrastructure for everyday trips to make it easier for people to leave their cars at home.

She said: "We are at a critical point where we can positively shape the new normal in Britain.

“We must enable people to use their cars less and travel actively more often, for the benefit of our own health and the future of the planet.”