Integrating Walkability into Planning Practice

Abstract

This study used data from www.walkscore.com to assess walking behavior in four U.S. cities. Walk scores measuring the so-called walkability of neighborhoods are ubiquitous, and although the relationship between walk scores and real estate values has been established, the relationship between walk scores and walking has not. In this research three models were developed to understand the correlation between walk scores (as indicators of walkability; i.e., opportunity to walk) and walking. The models looked at walk scores and walk mode share for different trip types. What changes should be expected with changing walk scores along different parts of the walk score spectrum are illustrated. Results suggest that walk scores may be used as a reasonable heuristic to assist with assessing trip impacts for individual projects. With the universal availability of such data, planners can establish a consistent, cost-effective tool for assessing walking behavior with robust and transferable results.

Modeling Satisfaction with the Walking Environment: The Case of an Urban University Neighborhood in a Developing Country

“…Much of the research aims at identifying certain indices or level of service measures 6 which would enable analysts to easily measure walkability through significant walking-7 environment attributes. 8 Weinberger et al study the power of the readily available Walk Score ® model as a cost-9 effective and transferrable predictor of walkability (9). The Walk Score ® model assigns scores, 10 on a scale of 100, to neighborhoods by implementing a certain pointing system (refer to (9)) to 11…”

“…As a result, a growing interest in understanding the 5 influence of attributes of the built environment on walkability has emerged (7). 6 A multitude of studies have investigated the effects of different attributes of the built 7 environment on walkability and identified over 80 such attributes, of which are the ease of 8 pedestrian crossing (8), sidewalk conditions (9), sidewalk connectivity (8,10,11), availability of 9 bus stops (11), presence of way-finding aids (8) and many others. Furthermore, a number of 10 approaches to measuring such attributes and their impact in terms of walkability have been 11 established.…”

“…Different indices and models have been proposed, each of which has its strengths 12 and weaknesses. Examples of such indices and models are Walk Score ® (9), Level of Service 13…”

Development of Low-Cost Methodology for Evaluating Pedestrian Safety in Support of Complete Streets Policy Implementation

“…A mix of land uses, including residential, business, and civic facilities, or urban site design characteristics (e.g., street orientation, infrequent driveway cuts, and so forth) all pointed to an environment that would draw pedestrians, even if the facilities provided were less than ideal. A Walk Score (as defined by the online walkability model walkscore.com) for the centroid of each cluster was noted, as an additional data point that has been found to be a predictor of actual user demand (12). In addition, transit availability has been shown to be a strong predictor of pedestrian presence (16).…”

“…Recent research has begun to develop models and new methodologies for estimating pedestrian volumes, another important facet of understanding pedestrian safety and risk (10)(11)(12). Other researchers have evaluated the impacts of crime and socioeconomic status on pedestrian travel patterns and safety outcomes (13)(14)(15), opportunities for monitoring pedestrian volumes and behavior with new technologies (7), possible environmental justice implications stemming from the link between crash rates and infrastructure deficiencies (15), and the complex relationships between crashes and various aspects of urban form (16,17).…”