Developing a research and practice tool to measure walkability: a demonstration project

Area of Science:

• Urban Planning and Design
• Geospatial Analysis
• Public Health

Background:

• Walkable neighbourhoods promote active transport, yet a gap exists between policy and practice.
• Objective data is needed to benchmark and monitor walkability in Australian cities.
• Assessing built environment and urban policy interventions is crucial for increasing walkability.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop and validate an automated geospatial tool for assessing neighbourhood walkability.
• To create a 'Walkability Index Tool' for policymakers, practitioners, and researchers.
• To enable user-specified scale assessments of local area walkability.

Main Methods:

• The tool utilizes open-source software within the Australian Urban Research Infrastructure Network (AURIN) framework.
• It incorporates key spatial measures: street connectivity, density, and land use mix.
• State-based data was used for demonstration and validation.

Main Results:

• An automated walkability index was successfully created using state-based data.
• A national walkability measure is not yet feasible due to inconsistent national land use mix data.
• Future work includes enhancing tool usability and exploring alternative data sources for a national index.

Conclusions:

• The AURIN Walkability Index Tool is a significant step towards measuring walkability across Australia.
• It highlights the value of accessible, accurate spatial data for research and policy.
• The tool can benchmark cities, assess planning decisions, and save resources when fully implemented.