Wednesday, July 2, 2008

Walk Score

A new Web tool called Walk Score will tell you how "walkable" your home location is. Walk Score does this by "calculating the walkability of an address by locating nearby stores, restaurants, schools, parks, etc. Walk Score measures how easy it is to live a car-lite lifestyle—not how pretty the area is for walking."

Your Walk Score is a number between 0 and 100. Here are general guidelines for interpreting your score:

  • 90 - 100 = Walkers' Paradise: Most errands can be accomplished on foot and many people get by without owning a car.
  • 70 - 90 = Very Walkable: It's possible to get by without owning a car.
  • 50 - 70 = Some Walkable Locations: Some stores and amenities are within walking distance, but many everyday trips still require a bike, public transportation, or car.
  • 25 - 50 = Not Walkable: Only a few destinations are within easy walking range. For most errands, driving or public transportation is a must.
  • 0 - 25 = Driving Only: Virtually no neighborhood destinations within walking range. You can walk from your house to your car!
My walk score, out in the county, was 15, which essentially means I have to drive just about anywhere. Which is correct, unless I want to walk 1 1/2 miles to the store, or bike steep hills.

3 comments:

Robert Lopresti said...

My house, in the "suburbs" off Lakeway, gets a 35, which I think is pretty accurate. What the site doesn't seem to take into consideration is that I live on a hill. If the algorhythm includes topography it doesn't say so (that I could see).

I was also amused that the amenities I could walk to include three schools, including one for martial arts, and one for real estate.

By the way, am I the only one who reads your blog, or does it just look that way?

piper said...

You're the only one.

Anonymous said...

My walk score is just 20 so as you see my present neighborhood is not very walkable. This service can be especially useful for those who are going to buy a house cause it can help to estimate a particular location. But how often do we walk nowadays? I ve found one more service called drive score at
http://drivescore.fizber.com/ With it one can see how close establishments are by car. Homes are often located in an area where restaurants, libraries, grocery stores,
hospitals and other businesses are easier to get to by car than on foot.