Trimparke - enkele beplanningsriglyne

Abstract

Within the framework of utilization of leisure in South Africa, there exists an imbalance in the spending of time and money between competitive sport on the one hand, and outdoor recreation and other forms of healthy exercise on the other. For the young the talented and the hyper-fit, there are lots of oppor­tunities, while the rest have to sit and watch. For want of South African statistics, it should be noted that in Germany, where although 47% of the population is in­volved in family fitness programmes, each employee nevertheless still has to provide the equivalent of six weeks' labour input towards the public treas­ury for health care. It is known that in South Africa more than 90% of the health expenditure is directed towards curing, with little regard to preventative health services. Seen against this background, it is alarm­ing that the ambitious trim park move­ment is apparently experiencing a drop in popularity at present. This puts local authorities in a dilemma, because with limited funds, no city council can afford to invest in an actiyity where the latter's right of existence is in the balance. As a result of requests from several authorities concerning the establish­ment of trim parks, it was decided to start an extensive research project to examine this problem. As a start, a sur­vey in twelve Transvaal towns was car­ried out in 1983 to collect information about trim park users. Some of the most important results with regard to deci­sion making and planning implications are here briefly discussed.
*This article is written in Afrikaans.