Perceived Walkability and Respective Urban Determinants: Insights from Bologna and Porto

Fernando Fonseca, George Papageorgiou, Simona Tondelli, Paulo Ribeiro, Elisa Conticelli, Mona Jabbari and Rui Ramos
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Fernando Fonseca: Centre for Territory, Environment and Construction (CTAC), University of Minho, 4800-058 Guimarães, Portugal
George Papageorgiou: SYSTEMA Research Centre, European University Cyprus, Engomi, Nicosia 2404, Cyprus
Simona Tondelli: Alma Mater Studiorum, University of Bologna, 40136 Bologna, Italy
Paulo Ribeiro: Centre for Territory, Environment and Construction (CTAC), University of Minho, 4800-058 Guimarães, Portugal
Elisa Conticelli: Alma Mater Studiorum, University of Bologna, 40136 Bologna, Italy
Mona Jabbari: Centre for Territory, Environment and Construction (CTAC), University of Minho, 4800-058 Guimarães, Portugal
Rui Ramos: Centre for Territory, Environment and Construction (CTAC), University of Minho, 4800-058 Guimarães, Portugal

Sustainability, 2022, vol. 14, issue 15, 1-19

Abstract: Walking is undoubtedly a sustainable and healthy mode of transport. However, the decision to walk is influenced by many built environment and streetscape attributes. Specifically, the term walkability is used to describe the extent to which the urban environment is pedestrian-friendly, usually by quantifying multiple built environment attributes at the neighbourhood scale. The present study adopts a qualitative approach to evaluate perceived walkability. Based on a questionnaire ( n = 1438) administered in the cities of Bologna and Porto, this paper analyses how respondents perceived and evaluated 19 built environment and streetscape attributes. An Exploratory Factor Analysis was carried out to examine the correlations between the various attributes and to identify the underlying walkability determinants. The analysis indicated that 13 attributes were highly correlated, resulting in four determinants: (i) urban ambiance, which includes land use and street design attributes, such as land use mix, enclosure, transparency, and architectural and landscape diversity; (ii) pedestrian infrastructure, which is related to sidewalk conditions; (iii) street connectivity and proximity to community facilities; and iv) access to other modes of transport. In turn, traffic safety and security were not correlated with perceived walkability in both cities. These findings suggest that specific urban design and pedestrian infrastructure attributes should be highly considered when formulating policies aiming to create more pedestrian-friendly cities, as well as in walkability studies and when developing walkability scores and indexes.

Keywords: perceived walkability; built environment; streetscape design; factor analysis; walking (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2022
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (14)

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