Browsing by Subject "Walking"

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Access Across America: Walk 2014 Data
(2015-08-21) Owen, Andrew; Murphy, Brendan; Levinson, David M; aowen@umn.edu; Owen, Andrew; University of Minnesota Center for Transportation Studies, Accessibility Observatory
These data were created as part of a study that examined the accessibility to jobs by walking in the 53 largest (by population) metropolitan areas in the United States. It is the most detailed evaluation to date of access to jobs by walking, and it allows for a direct comparison of the walking accessibility performance of America's largest metropolitan areas.
Access Across America: Walk 2022
(Center for Transportation Studies, University of Minnesota, 2024-09) Owen, Andrew; Liu, Shirley Shiqin; Jain, Saumya; Lind, Eric
Accessibility is the ease and feasibility of reaching valued destinations. It can be measured for a wide array of transportation modes, to different types of destinations, and at different times of day. There are a variety of ways to define accessibility, but the number of destinations reachable within a given travel time is the most comprehensible and transparent as well as the most directly comparable across cities. This study estimates the accessibility to jobs by walking or rolling for each of the United States' 11 million census blocks and analyzes these data in the 50 largest (by population) metropolitan areas. Travel times by walking or rolling are calculated using detailed pathway networks and low-speed streets. Rankings are determined by a weighted average of job accessibility; a higher weight is given to closer jobs, as jobs closer to origins are more easily reached, and are thus more valuable, than those further away. Jobs reachable within ten minutes are weighted most heavily, and jobs are given decreasing weights as travel time increases up to 60 minutes. This report presents detailed accessibility values for each metropolitan area, as well as block-level maps which illustrate the spatial patterns of accessibility within each area. Additionally, access to jobs by travel time is separately analyzed according to the income grouping of resident workers who experience that access. Because this is the first national pedestrian accessibility report since 2014, year-over-year changes in accessibility are not provided for each area. Future annual evaluations will include the changes over time.
Access Across America: Walk 2022 Data
(2024-10-21) Owen, Andrew; Liu, Shirley Shiqin; Jain, Saumya; Hockert, Matthew; Lind, Eric; owenx148@umn.edu; Owen, Andrew; University of Minnesota Center for Transportation Studies, Accessibility Observatory
These data were created as part of a study that examines the accessibility to jobs by walking or rolling across the United States. It is the most detailed evaluation to date of access to jobs by walking, and it allows for a direct comparison of the walkability of America's metropolitan areas. These data are part of a longitudinal study. Walk/roll data for additional years can be found in the Accessibility Observatory Data collection: https://hdl.handle.net/11299/200592
Access Across America: Walking 2014
(Center for Transportation Studies, University of Minnesota, 2015-05) Owen, Andrew; Levinson, David; Murphy, Brendan
Accessibility is the ease of reaching valued destinations. It can be measured for various transportation modes, to different types of destinations, and at different times of day. There are a variety of ways to define accessibility, but the number of destinations reachable within a given travel time is the most comprehensible and transparent, as well as the most directly comparable across cities. This study estimates the accessibility to jobs by walking in the 50 largest (by population) metropolitan areas in the United States, and is a companion study to our Access Across America: Transit 2014 report. Rankings are determined by a weighted average of accessibility, giving a higher weight to closer jobs. Jobs reachable within ten minutes are weighted most heavily, and jobs are given decreasing weights as travel time increases up to 60 minutes. This report presents detailed accessibility values for each metropolitan area, as well as block-level maps which illustrate the spatial patterns of accessibility within each area. A separate publication, Access Across America: Walking 2014 Methodology, describes the data and methodology used in this evaluation: http://dx.doi.org/10.13020/D6D598
Access Across America: Walking 2014 Methodology
(Center for Transportation Studies, University of Minnesota, 2015-05) Owen, Andrew; Levinson, David M.
Accessibility is the ease of reaching valued destinations. It can be measured for various transportation modes, to different types of destinations, and at different times of day. There are a variety of ways to define accessibility, but the number of destinations reachable within a given travel time is the most comprehensible and transparent, as well as the most directly comparable across cities. This report describes the data and methodology used in the separate publication, Access Across America: Walking 2014 (http://hdl.handle.net/11299/176566). That report estimates the accessibility to jobs by walking in the 50 largest (by population) metropolitan areas in the United States. Walking mode-share for commute trips nationally is around 2.8%, and 5.0% within large cities in the United States. Rankings are determined by a weighted average of accessibility, giving a higher weight to closer jobs. Jobs reachable within ten minutes are weighted most heavily, and jobs are given decreasing weight as travel time increases up to 60 minutes.
Access to Destinations: How Close is Close Enough? Estimating Accurate Distance Decay Functions for Multiple Modes and Different Purposes
(Minnesota Department of Transportation, 2008-05) Iacono, Michael; Krizek, Kevin; El-Geneidy, Ahmed M.
Existing urban and suburban development patterns and the subsequent automobile dependence are leading to increased traffic congestion and air pollution. In response to the growing ills caused by urban sprawl, there has been an increased interest in creating more “livable” communities in which destinations are brought closer to ones home or workplace (that is, achieving travel needs through land use planning). While several reports suggest best practices for integrated land use-planning, little research has focused on examining detailed relationships between actual travel behavior and mean distance to various services. For example, how far will pedestrians travel to access different types of destinations? How to know if the “one quarter mile assumption” that is often bantered about is reliable? How far will bicyclists travel to cycle on a bicycle only facility? How far do people drive for their common retail needs? To examine these questions, this research makes use of available travel survey data for the Twin Cities region. A primary outcome of this research is to examine different types of destinations and accurately and robustly estimate distance decay models for auto and non-auto travel modes, and also to comment on its applicability for: (a) different types of travel, and (b) development of accessibility measures that incorporate this information.
Access to Public Transit and Its Infuence on Ridership for Older Adults in Two U.S. Cities
(Journal of Transport and Land Use, 2009) Hess, Daniel Baldwin
Growth in the population of older adults (age 60 and above) in coming years will challenge urban planners and transportation managers to provide travel options that support autonomy. To investigate barriers that older adults experience in using public transit, this research explores associations between older adults who do and do not ride fixed-route public transit and their neighborhood walking access to buses and trains. The research tests whether or not the distance between a trip origin or destination and a transit stop or station is a significant factor in predicting frequency of transit ridership. Data from a survey of older adults in California and New York is used to regress older adults’ frequency of riding public transit against explanatory variables, including demographic and socioeconomic variables, access and mobility measures, and neighborhood characteristics. Findings suggest that self-reported walking distance to transit has a statistically significant influence—in San José, California, but not in Buffalo, New York—in predicting transit ridership frequency. Drivers are more sensitive to walking distance than nondrivers. Models estimate that in San José, each additional five minutes in perceived walking time to transit decreases transit ridership frequency by five percent for nondrivers and by 25 percent for drivers. Older adults are likely to ride transit more often if they are male, nonwhite, and low income.
Active accessibility: A review of operational measures of walking and cycling accessibility
(Journal of Transport and Land Use, 2016) Vale, David S.; Saraiva, Miguel; Pereira, Mauro
Active travel is enthusiastically promoted in the Western world due to its clear and demonstrated individual and collective benefits. While active travel has been shown to be associated with features of the built environment such as density and land-use mix, it is also associated with walking and cycling accessibility—which we designate as active accessibility. However, the measurement of active accessibility is not straightforward and it can represent significantly different features of the built environment. This paper presents an extensive review of published research that measures active accessibility. We classified the literature into four categories based on the methodology used: distance-based, gravity-based or potential, topological or infra- structure-based, and walkability and walk score-type measures. A fifth category was created to classify outliers consisting of distinct methodological approaches or hybrids of the four main categories. We argue that almost all of these methods have conceptual and computational limitations, and that there are inconsistencies in the use of concepts and terms. Furthermore, no sensitivity analysis was carried out on the selected parameters. We conclude by presenting some guidelines that might improve the value and clarity of active accessibility research, theory, and practice.
Built environment correlates of walking for transportation: Differences between commuting and non-commuting trips
(Journal of Transport and Land Use, 2021) Liu, Jixiang; Zhou, Jiangping; Xiao, Longzhu
As a sustainable mode of travel, walking for transportation has multiple environmental, social, and health-related benefits. In existing studies, however, such walking has rarely been differentiated between commuting and non-commuting trips. Using multilevel zero-inflated negative binomial regression and multilevel Tobit regression models, this study empirically examines the frequency and duration of commuting and non-commuting walking and their correlates in Xiamen, China. It finds that (1) non-commuting walking, on average, has a higher frequency and longer duration than commuting walking; (2) most socio-demographic variables are significant predictors, and age, occupation, and family size have opposite-direction effects on commuting and non-commuting walking; and (3) different sets of built environment variables are correlated with commuting and non-commuting walking, and the built environment collectively influences the latter more significantly than the former. The findings provide useful references for customized interventions concerning promoting commuting and non-commuting walking.
Community design and how much we drive
(Journal of Transport and Land Use, 2012) Marshall, Wesley; Garrick, Norman
The preponderance of evidence suggests that denser and more connected communities with a higher degree of mixed land uses results in fewer vehicle kilometers traveled (VKT). However, there is less agreement as the size of the effect. Also, there is no clear understanding as to the aspects of community design that are most important in contributing to lower VKT. One reason why there is some confusion on this point is that past studies have not always made a clear distinction between different community and street network design characteristics such as density, connectivity, and configuration. In this research, care was taken to fully characterize the different features of the street network including a street pattern classification system that works at the neighborhood level but also focuses on the citywide street network as a separate entity. We employ a spatial kriging analysis of NHTS data in combination with a generalized linear regression model in order to examine the extent to which community design and land use influence VKT in 24 California cities of populations from 30,000 to just over 100,000. Our results suggest that people living in denser street network designs tended to drive less. Connectivity, however, played an adverse role in performance.
Do characteristics of walkable environments support bicycling? Toward a definition of bicycle-supported development
(Journal of Transport and Land Use, 2016) Muhs, Christopher D.; Clifton, Kelly J.
Does walkability equate with bikeability? Through a comprehensive review of studies of the built environment and bicycling, including mode choice, route choice, safety, and urban design literature, this paper addresses this question. Previous work has raised the issue that the two modes are functionally different, despite them often being combined into a nonmotorized category, and has highlighted research challenges. Existing studies of bikeability have largely focused on infrastructure. This paper contributes to the literature on bicycling and the built environment by providing a thorough review of past research with a focus on the relationships between land use, urban form, and bicycling. Highly walkable and highly bikeable environments are quite different, and there is little consistency in the built-environment attributes associated with cycling across studies. We postulate that this inconsistency is due in part to a disconnect between theory and methods of measuring the environment for cycling along with data limitations, including sample sizes and our understanding being based mainly on cross-sectional data. Many research opportunities are present for land-use planning policies now that planning for cycling is a top priority for cities and regions across the world.
Do children walk where they bike? Exploring built environment correlates of children's walking and bicycling
(Journal of Transport and Land Use, 2016) Moran, Mike; Plaut, Pnina; Baron-Epel, Orna
Previous studies examined environmental correlates of children's physical activity. While most of these studies used aggregated physical activity measures (i.e., overall physical activity, active travel), little is known about the contribution of specific environmental attributes to specific types of physical activity. This study examined associations between GIS-based environmental measures and children’s self-reported walking and bicycling. The study area included “traditional neighborhoods” (N=4), characterized by high-density, land-use mix and grid-street network, and "suburban neighborhoods" (N=3), characterized by low-density, land-use segregation, and cul-de-sac streets. Data on children’s physical activity and psychosocial and socio-demographic factors were obtained through a school survey (of fifth and sixth graders) (N=573). Urban-form measures (intersection density, residential density, and built coverage) were significantly positively associated with walking and negatively associated with bicycling. These associations remained significant after controlling for social, intra- and inter-personal factors. These findings suggest that certain environments may encourage children’s walking and hinder their bicycling at the same time (and vice versa) and therefore raise the need for a more clear distinction between child-related walkability and bikeablilty.
Do people walk more in transit-accessible places?
(Journal of Transport and Land Use, 2020) Choi, Yunkyung; Guhathakurta, Subhrajit
While transit-oriented developments (TODs) are generally believed to promote the use of sustainable travel modes, the degree to which various components of TODs influence travel behavior is still debatable. This paper revisits Chatman’s (2013) question: “Does TOD need the T?” by addressing the effect of rail transit access in influencing walking behavior in TOD areas. In particular, we compare TODs to other similar areas, with rail transit access being the key variable, and examine whether people are more likely to walk in TODs for purposes other than transit use. This hypothesis is tested using traffic analysis zones (TAZs) in the Atlanta Metropolitan Region. First, we identify TAZs within rail catchment areas and use propensity scores to match them with other TAZs with similar built environmental characteristics except for rail transit access. We then conduct a statistical analysis comparing walking trips for both commuting and non-commuting trips in these two TAZ groups. Our results confirm that the likelihood of walking trips increases in transit-accessible TAZs compared to other similar areas without transit. Therefore, states and localities can maximize the benefits of pedestrian-friendly built environments by making rail transit access an important part of their planning and design.
Exploring changes in public transport use and walking following residential relocation: A British case study
(Journal of Transport and Land Use, 2016) Aditjandra, Paulus Teguh; Cao, Xinyu (Jason); Mulley, Corinne
The promotion of local sustainable travel is ever prominent within local transport plans, although it is still not well understood how the change to more sustainable and less carbon-based travel can be achieved. The objective of this study is to gain a better understanding of the travel choice mechanism following residential relocation. This paper uses a structural equations model and an ordered model to explore the drivers of public transport and walking use within an urban environment, using a quasi-longitudinal dataset from 10 communities in the metropolitan area of Tyne and Wear, in northeast England. The results show that changes in public transport use are determined by accessibility features of the built environment, alongside socio-demographic and travel attitude characteristics. Changes in walking, on the other hand, are determined mostly by built-environment characteristics. These findings suggest that a different approach is needed for the promotion of public transport use than for increasing walking trips (aside from walking to access public transport). The provision of public transport services needs to take into account the importance of the value of transport to users, to sufficiently attract and retain them. To promote walking, policy must focus on changes to the built environment (such as safety, travel accessibility, and the sociability of the environment), since it is changes in these characteristics that drive walking in the urban area.
Gendered walkability: Building a daytime walkability index for women
(Journal of Transport and Land Use, 2019) Golan, Yael; Wilkinson, Nancy Lee; Henderson, Jason; Weverka, Aiko
Urban walkability is influenced both by built environment features and by pedestrian demographics. Research has shown that factors influencing women’s walking differ from those affecting men’s. Using a mixed-method approach, this study creates a new women-specific, GIS-based walkability index using San Francisco as a case study, and answers two questions: Which variables most influence women’s propensity to walk? And Does the leading walkability index, Walk Score, reflect women’s walkability? Focus group participants (n=17) ranked crime, homelessness and street/sidewalk cleanliness as the three most influencing factors on women’s walkability, accounting for 58% to 67% of the Women’s Walkability Index’s total score. The least walkable areas in San Francisco, according to this index, are rated as some of the most walkable neighborhoods in the city by Walk Score, despite high crime and homelessness density. Walk Score is negatively correlated with the new Women’s Walkability Index (Spearman’s rho = -0.585) and inaccurately represents women’s walkability. If the new index accurately captures the reality of women’s walking, then some of the most widely accepted conventions about what kind of areas promote walking could be inaccurate when it comes to women.
Green Line LRT: Job Accessibility Impacts in Minneapolis and Saint Paul
(Center for Transportation Studies, University of Minnesota, 2015-06) Owen, Andrew; Kadziolka, Margot
This report presents the results of an analysis of accessibility to jobs for all Census blocks in Minneapolis and Saint Paul, MN, before and after the start of Green Line LRT service. Accessibility, also referred to as "connectivity," measures the potential for interactions between people and destinations in different locations. The accessibility metric used in this analysis is the number of jobs that can be reached by transit within 30 minutes of travel during the 7–9 AM period. For example, from an individual block it might be possible to reach 10,000 jobs within 30 minutes by transit on average between 7 and 9 AM. Residents of Saint Paul experience the greatest increase in access to jobs: a year after the opening of the Green Line, workers in Saint Paul can, on average, reach over 2,000 more jobs within 30 minutes by transit than they could previously — a 5.3% increase. This analysis suggests that had the Green Line been implemented without any supporting changes to the regional bus network, accessibility benefits would have been limited to areas near the new rail stations. The relatively low residential density of the area means that a single transit line (whether bus or rail) can reach only a small minority of residents. A well-designed network of routes can provide access to a much larger area, and can help distribute the benefits of new investments like the Green Line throughout the community.
Identifying appropriate land-use mix measures for use in a national walkability index
(Journal of Transport and Land Use, 2018) Mavoa, Suzanne; Eagleson, Serryn; Badland, Hannah M.; Gunn, Lucy; Boulangé, Claire; Stewart, Joshua; Giles-Corti, Billie
Walkability indices can guide planning and policy for more sustainable and livable cities. Land-use mix is an important component of walkability that can be measured in a number of ways. Many land-use mix measures require fine-scaled land-use data that are not always available, especially when analyzing walkability across larger geographic extents. This study investigated the feasibility of calculating a national walkability index in Australia, using metropolitan Melbourne as a case study. The study focused on the dual challenges of selecting an appropriate measure of land-use mix and identifying an appropriate land-use data source. We calculated an entropy land-use mix measure with three different Australian land-use datasets. Our comparison of the resulting land-use mix measures highlighted the differences in the land-use datasets and led to our conclusion that none of the three land-use datasets was appropriate for use in a national land-use mix measure. Therefore, we also developed two new exploratory “intensity” measures of land use — daily living and local living — that were able to be calculated nationally with readily available data. Modelled associations with transport walking and comparisons with the entropy land-use mix measures indicate that these new measures were appropriate for assessing national land use in a national walkability index.
The impact of street characteristics on older pedestrians’ perceived safety in Shanghai, China
(Journal of Transport and Land Use, 2020) Wu, Hao; Zhang, Zhaoxi; Chen, Yong; Jiao, Junfeng
Land-use patterns and rapid urban sprawl greatly influence older adults’ mobility in China. Older pedestrians’ safety issues are crucial because these people are more frequently injured in traffic accidents. This research aims to investigate what street characteristics influence perceived safety among older pedestrians in Shanghai, China. A mix of research methods containing both quantitative and qualitative analyses were employed. The researchers recruited 68 elderly urban dwellers who each agreed to take a perceived safety survey using 39 simulated streetscape images that contained 12 street characteristics extracted from four sectional zones of streets. Ordinal logit regression was performed to investigate the impact of street characteristics on older pedestrians’ perceived safety. A semi-structured, in-depth interview was conducted with 8 out of the 68 participants. It was found that the street interface type, elevation differences, footpath width, paver directions, isolation facility type, and vehicle traffic all affected pedestrians’ perceived safety after adjusting for individual demographic attributes and the physical limitations of the participants. Understanding the street characteristics related to perceived safety will contribute to making more inclusive and walkable cities.
Linear quadratic regulator control of an under actuated five-degree-of-freedom planar biped walking robot
(2010-07) Leines, Matthew Thomas
Modern robotic systems are fully actuated with full information of themselves and their immediate surroundings. If faced with a failure or damage, robotic systems cannot function properly and can quickly damage themselves. A Linear Quadratic Regulator (LQR) control system is proposed to allow an under actuated (damaged) robotic system (five-degrees-of-freedom, planar, biped, walking robot) to continue to follow a human-like walking gait in a series of Matlab and Simulink simulations. The proposed LQR controller keeps joint position errors to below 4 degrees for the fully actuated system, performing the entire gait within the given step time and length. The under actuated control system can match the fully actuated system using a separate LQR controller. Use of time-varying control and Markovian jump methods can compile both controllers into a dynamically adaptive whole, capable of full to partial gait during both locked joint and free joint failures with brakes applied as needed.
Measuring transportation at a human scale: An intercept survey approach to capture pedestrian activity
(Journal of Transport and Land Use, 2013) Schneider, Robert James
Pedestrian travel data are critical for measuring and analyzing sustainable transportation systems. However, traditional household travel surveys and analysis methods often ignore secondary modes, such as walking from a street parking space to a store entrance or walking from a bus stop to home. New data collection and analysis techniques are needed, especially in areas where walking is common. This paper describes an intercept survey methodology used to measure retail pharmacy customer travel to, from, and within 20 shopping districts in the San Francisco Bay Area. Of the 1003 respondents, 959 (96 percent) reported all modes of travel used from leaving home until returning home, including secondary modes. Walking was the primary travel mode on 21 percent of respondent tours, but an analysis of secondary modes found that 52 percent of tours included some walking. Pedestrian travel was particularly common within shopping districts, accounting for 65 percent of all trips within 804 meters (0.5 miles) of survey stores. Detailed walking path data from the survey showed that respondents in denser, more mixed-use shopping districts tended to walk along the main commercial street as well as other streets connecting to the core shopping area, while respondent pedestrian movements in automobile-oriented shopping districts tended to be contained within specific shopping complexes.

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