Assessing walkability: Index construction and application to a medium-size Greek city

School of Engineering, Department of Planning and Regional Development, University of Thessaly, 383 34, Volos, Greece

Abstract

European urban policies focus on sustainable urban mobility concept. This is linked to the constraint of motorized transport and the promotion of active-mobility modes (walking, cycling) which contribute to Green House Gas reduction targets as set in the European Union (EU) Climate Policy. Especially, walkable neighborhoods and 15-minute cities have been embraced in the post-pandemic city emphasizing the importance of walkability, which re-conciliates environmental concerns with liveable, sustainable and healthier communities. This research aims to construct a “walkability index” (WI) that may offer significant, reliable and quick results for the assessment of walkability in an urban area. The city of Larissa comprises the empirical field for its application. The index methodology is based on five main parameters: land use mix, residential density, pedestrian crossing connectivity, sidewalk condition and pedestrian-friendly areas. Then Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP) is implemented so as to weigh the selected parameters and finally the parameters multiplied and added in an equation f(x) with the use of ArcGIS Pro software. WI detects friendly-walking and non-friendly-walking areas and assesses the factors that hinder urban mobility and vulnerable people. Therefore, it may help policy makers and urban planners to build sustainable and healthy cities and improve the quality of life.