Make Your Community Walkable

Walking

Source: AARP.org | August 31, 2006

Remember the "good ol' days" when you walked down the sidewalk to go to the neighborhood grocery store? You'd greet the neighbors who were sitting on their front porches and chat awhile. You'd walk down to Main Street and make your way down the broad, tree-lined sidewalks abuzz with shops, restaurants, and friendly passersby. By the time you made it back home, you’d have three miles and a few errands behind you. Those were "walkable communities."

Today, as the Main Streets of America give way to sprawling suburbs, more of us use our cars, rather than our own two legs, to get around. Cities and rural areas pose walking challenges with their traffic, crime, congestion, dangerous roads, and a lack of sidewalks or walking paths.  That’s beginning to change and there’s a national movement afoot to return to the walkable communities of those “good ol’ days.”

What is a Walkable Community?

In a walkable community, people "don't have to jump in a car to get somewhere," says Bob Chauncey of the National Center for Bicycling and Walking. "Regardless of their age or physical ability, they can get from one place to another. They have attractive destinations to get to."

Chauncey describes Chestertown, the Maryland town he lives in, as a walkable community. He says the downtown area has shaded trees, nice sidewalks, plants and benches, and places to go. "It’s a nice place to be."

Having even more places to go would make it more walkable, according to Chauncey, as would more mixed-use housing—such as townhomes and condos—in addition to single-family homes.

According to Walkable Communities, Inc., some of the characteristics of walkable communities include:

• town centers – a quiet, pleasant main street with a set of hearty, healthy stores  
• areas designed for people first, cars second
• neighborhoods with mixed income and mixed-use housing
• safe, adequate and appealing public space for people to gather and to sit
• easy access for people of all ages and abilities
• main streets that are speed-controlled and interconnected, or laid out in a grid
• many people walking

Those pushing for more walkable communities in the U.S. say the trend is leaning in that direction, after years of building spread-out suburbs. Cities are reclaiming their waterfronts and creating more walkable downtown areas. Even some suburban areas are developing town centers as places to walk, shop, and gather together. And walkable communities are becoming more appealing to retired people, as well as young families. Both like the convenience of having stores, entertainment, and services all within walking distance.

"More and more boomers and empty nesters are returning to cities because of the attractions that cities have," says Chauncey. "There's an appeal to cities among those who’ve raised their kids in the suburbs and don’t want to live there anymore."

But many developers are misled about what walkable communities are, says Dan Burden, the executive director of Walkable Communities, which helps communities become more walkable and walker-friendly. "Just putting in sidewalks doesn't make a walkable community." It's everything mentioned above and, ideally, more (such as schools that are safe to walk to.)

Creating a Walkable Community

Although you might not have the perfect walkable community, maybe it's walkable enough – or can be made so.  For instance, you might have good sidewalks and calm traffic patterns, but have had dangerous encounters with unleashed dogs, which have made you feel unsafe.

If you don’t have a walkable community, or you live in one that needs improvement, there are things you can do to invite more walkers. You might be able to improve some things on your own, or you might need to recruit neighbors, community leaders, local officials, and businesspeople to help. Social change usually requires the efforts of more than one person.   

In the situation above, talking to dog owners yourself might solve the problem. You also might try getting a leash law passed – or enforced if you already have one. This might require that you speak with local officials or perhaps recruit members of your community to support this action.

Look around your neighborhood and see what could be fixed or improved upon to make your community more walkable – things like broken or overgrown sidewalks, or not enough stoplights or signs. Here are some problems you might discover, along with some actions you can take to resolve them. Your involvement might take some time and persistence, but the outcome will be worth your efforts!

Creative Solutions

Problem: There are no sidewalks or they are cluttered, cracked, or otherwise in disrepair.
What You Can Do: Contact the public works department or your elected community representative about broken, cluttered, or otherwise unsafe sidewalks. Rally neighbors to push for adding sidewalks and use their support to make your case. You might have to start a petition or ask neighbors to also contact elected officials. The more calls and requests they receive about an issue the better. Remind people that sidewalks make safer neighborhoods and increase a community’s attractiveness as a place to live, which increases their real estate values. If sidewalks are blocked by bushes, tree branches, or trash, ask neighbors to help trim overgrowth and clear walkways in front of their homes. If your community has a newsletter, publish the request in there.

Problem: Cars speed up and down neighborhood streets and don’t slow down at intersections or for walkers. Streets are hard to cross.
What You Can Do: Ask city or county officials to add speed bumps, crosswalks, stop and yield signs, or lights to slow traffic. Attend a homeowners’ association meeting or talk to the group’s president to raise awareness of the problem and gather support for your requests. You also can ask local officials to provide police surveillance of all areas residents have identified as problems. Police presence usually succeeds in getting more drivers to obey safety laws.

Problem: I’m worried about crime.
What You Can Do: Some neighborhoods are safer than others. If you feel unsafe in your neighborhood, walk in another one or try to walk with at least one other person if you can. Try to join or organize a neighborhood walking group. Walk purposefully and carry a whistle. Don’t walk at night in an unsafe area and avoid areas with large bushes and trees. If your neighborhood doesn’t have one, suggest and help organize a neighborhood crime watch. Neighbors take turns driving through the community, reporting anything that looks suspicious. Communities with organized crime watch groups have less crime.

Working to improve the community you live in is empowering, and, ultimately, everyone who lives there benefits. Forming or joining a neighborhood group or coalition is a great way to meet new people and improve your chances of accomplishing the changes you seek. And making a community more walkable improves its livability overall, making it safer, friendlier, more attractive, and more active.     

Sources: Walkable Communities, Inc., Pedestrian and Bicycle Information Center