Researchers have used Google Street View to study hundreds of elements of the built environment, including buildings, green spaces, pavements and roads, and how these elements relate to each other and influence coronary artery disease in people living in these neighborhoods.
It’s precisely because this is my field (public built environments) that I’m so skeptical of claims based on dubious statistical relationships. I’m willing to be convinced, of course, but if you had to go into a meeting with public officials and make suggestions, these are the sorts of questions you should be expecting. I am not convinced by the public health angle, so far, anyway.