Quantifying Walkable Urbanism

Walkable urbanism is the new buzzword in community planning and development. Websites are dedicated to neighborhood walks, the brookings institute has a collection of several articles by Chris Leinberger, and now you can even check the walkable score of your own neighborhood.

[Image: Walkable urbanism is a new trend in the popular perception of neighborhoods. Courtesy of FN Mag.]

A new google maps mashup that ranks your neighborhood based on proximity to local services, both in diversity and density.

Walk Score ranks your neighborhood based on 100 total possible points.

• 90-100 = Walker’s Paradise: Most errands can be accomplished on foot and many people get by without owning a car.
• 70-90 = Very Walkable: It’s possible to get by without owning a car.
• 50-70 = Some Walkable Locations: Some stores and amenities are within walking distance, but many everyday trips still require a bike, public transportation, or car.
• 25-50 = Not Walkable: Only a few destinations are within easy walking range. For most errands, driving or public transportation is a must.
• 0-25 = Driving Only: Virtually no neighborhood destinations within walking range. You can walk from your house to your car!

I put in four places I have lived to see how they rank, as well as to visualize the progression from my suburban childhood to my urban lifestyle in Manhattan.

The Woodlands, TX - 8 years (I’m ignoring my first 10 years in different locations around Houston)

At a week score of 14, this subdivision was clearly in the realm of “car culture.” Despite this fact, it was a nice place to live because the original master planners set up a framework to leave as many trees as possible. Thus, “The Woodlands” really felt like it. So, many of the people living there were trading the convenience of walkable urbanism for the serenity of the picturesque.

Atlanta, GA - 8 years

At a surprisingly impressive score of 85 for Atlanta, the last neighborhood I lived in definitely reflects the score. However, if you look at the first apartment I lived in during college, it scores a 46. This is much more on par with our impression of the city of Atlanta. Although, on my last visit to the city earlier this year they have come a long way in developing street level retail and walkable streets in midtown.

New York, NY - 2 years

Pretty damn close to perfection, but what else do you expect of Manhattan than walkable neighborhoods. Although, I have to say that perfection is not without it’s annoyances - density is a blessing and a curse. For now we’ll weigh the blessing side a little more.

Paris, France - 6 months (during my time in Atlanta)

This is merely to point out that Walk Score is not perfect. This probably has more to do with the limited Google database of Parisian services, because Paris was equally walkable to Manhattan, and more pleasant at that. Walk Score is the first to admit the flaws in their system, however. Among these are safety, street/block size, topography, and weather.

Despite all this, Walk Score is not only fun to compare the places you have lived, but a good indicator of the neighborhood. If you are trying to move, you can utilize this site to rate a few neighborhoods in a city you are unfamiliar with.

Perhaps the most interesting aspect of this tool is the real estate tile. This may be the first step in monetizing walkable urbanism. Much like the recent development in sustainable practices, economic incentives have arisen to influence a cultural shift. If that is the case, good bye “big box,” hello Jane Jacobs.

Check your own neighborhood’s score at Walk Score.  Then, come back and answer the new survey at the top of the page, so I can see how walkable the neighborhoods of my readers are.

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