Year: 2011
Type: report
Abstract: This report sets out the arguments and evidence for investing in the walking environment. Walking, either as a form of transport, or for pleasure has many benefits: it is good for the environment, for health and social sustainability, and for economic conditions. Yet many of our environments are not conducive to walking. City and town centres are often poorly designed for pedestrians and dominated by traffic, and local neighbourhoods are often planned for car use, above other modes of travel. Investments in the walking environment can take a number of forms. These investments can lead directly to higher walking levels and pedestrian numbers, and can also create better places for the users of the urban environment. Both increases in walking and area improvements have a wide range of benefits for 'people' and 'place'. These relationships are complex and sometimes difficult to measure precisely. However, there is now sufficient evidence from numerous sources to build a picture of the benefits of investment in the walking environment, and this evidence is presented in the report. It is also important to know if investing in walking environments provides 'value for money'. To address this, the report summarises cost-benefit analyses of different types of investment in the walking environment. The report also presents several evaluated case studies of completed walking environment schemes from the UK and internationally.
Language: English
Subfield: Transportation
Field: Social Sciences
Domain: Social Sciences
Open Access status: green
OpenAlex ID: W26561529