Walking With A Purpose

When you picture a bustling city, what images pop into your mind? I suspect the majority of these thoughts include cars. Yellow taxis lining sidewalks, elevated highways full of automobiles zooming by, freeways congested with glaring tail lights and pedestrians standing at crosswalks waiting for a safe time to cross the street. Our cities have been built for cars continuously adjusted to compensate for an increased demand for cars. Developing “walkable” cities and neighborhoods should be prioritized to contribute to the health of the population and planet.

Citizens of the United States have become increasingly reliant on cars, resulting in individuals and cities falling into automobile dependency. Todd Litman, the founder and executive director of the Victoria Transport Policy Institute, discussed important factors in the cycle. Litman highlights many factors contributing to this concept, including the idea that dispersed development patterns lead to an increase in vehicle ownership, which leads to automobile oriented transport planning. To some planners, it makes sense to expand roads and increase parking requirements if the demand for cars is estimated to grow. However, Litman states in an article titled “Breaking the Cycle of Automobile Dependency” that “The downsides, such as reduced travel options…, more dispersed destinations …, and the additional costs that result, are often overlooked in planning analysis.”

A “walkable” area includes a variety of factors. In an article published by Forbes titled “Walk This Way: Why Pedestrians Hold The Key To Sustainable Cities”, Professor Billie Giles-Corti states that people are more likely to walk in cities that offer three specific attributes: Connected street networks, easy access destinations and levels of density high enough to support high quality public transport and local services. In short, pedestrians are prioritized in “walkable” cities.

There are a number of benefits associated with placing pedestrians over cars. Walking is an extremely healthy mode of transportation. Developing “walkable” cities would also be more time efficient. Denser neighborhoods would decrease the time one individual spends commuting.

In 2019, 29% of our country’s greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions were accounted for by transportation, making this sector the largest contributor of U.S. GHG emissions. Therefore, less driving would result in a decrease in emissions, critical to the health of the environment. Finally, shifting away from focusing on automobiles would be safer overall. Laurie Winkless, author of the Forbes article, writes, “From the poor air quality that results from vehicle exhaust emissions and tire wear, to driver, cyclist and pedestrian road deaths and noise pollution, having so many people reliant on their cars disadvantages everyone.” From 2010 to 2019, the number of people killed by drivers while walking in the U.S. increased by 45%. These deaths can and should be prevented.

How do we do this? How do we make such a drastic shift in urban developments? In new areas yet to be constructed, levels of density must be optimized. This would include deviating away from building large housing developments outside of city centers far away from amenities, services and work spaces. In areas that are already established, it would be important to repurpose activity centers. Professor Billie Giles-Corti explains this idea, stating, “So instead of having a big shopping center, repurpose some of that infrastructure for housing, sports facilities and other amenities.” Green spaces such as parks could be added to provide nice places to walk and contribute to the health of the environment, and cities could adopt traffic calming measures. This would include creating spaces where pedestrians and motorized vehicles would be able to operate in harmony. More vegetation would be included, as well as lower speed limits and high-quality sidewalks.

Cars have their purpose and have enabled humans to accomplish amazing feats and experience life changing journeys. However, it is simply not sustainable to keep accommodating cars when an alternate option is available. Imagine how peaceful it would be if city centers consisted of beautiful pathways filled only with the noise of shoe soles on the ground. Prioritizing pedestrians is the key to sustainability in our nations’ cities.