Microscale walkability indicators for fifty-nine European central urban areas: An open-access tabular dataset and a...

Area of Science:

• Urban Planning and Public Health
• Geographic Information Systems (GIS) and Spatial Data Analysis

Background:

• Walkable urban environments positively influence active travel and physical activity.
• A lack of European-level indicators for pedestrian-friendly environments hinders policy development.
• This research addresses the need for microscale data on urban walkability.

Purpose of the Study:

• To introduce a novel dataset of 17 microscale walkability indicators for 59 European urban areas.
• To support policy analysis for healthy, low-carbon transportation systems and sustainable communities.
• To provide data for raising awareness and monitoring progress in urban sustainability and public health goals.

Main Methods:

• Application of a virtual street audit tool using Google Street View for data collection.
• Digitization of 112,577 street and crossing segments, assessing various pedestrian environment features.
• Data processed into tabular format representing shares of street/crossing length by city, and visualized on a web-GIS platform.

Main Results:

• A comprehensive dataset of 17 walkability indicators across 59 European cities is presented.
• The data includes detailed information on active uses, amenities, infrastructure, and safety features.
• A web-GIS platform offers high-resolution spatial data for visualization and dissemination.

Conclusions:

• The developed indicators and data are crucial for assessing and improving pedestrian environments.
• This resource can inform urban mobility strategies and contribute to achieving public health and sustainability targets.
• The findings highlight the importance of microscale urban design for active travel and well-being.