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It has to be pleasurable to walk. Remember you are competing with the automobile, which will transport you from point A to point B in a great deal of relative comfort and luxury. If the walking or transit experience is not a very pleasant one, than those who can afford to will almost always choose to drive.
Who gets to decide what is pleasurable or not? seems subjective to me. If i was used to living in a dense and urban environment and i was used to commuting by foot.... i can't see myself just giving up on walking if i move to an area where the buildings are too new...
just seems a little strange to me.
I guess i am honestly just more used to walking or something and aren't really that picky.
A place like this https://www.google.com/maps/@51.4538...CwbKUIKxrg!2e0
would be very comfortable for me to walk in, probably safe, low traffic, sidewalk almost at level with street, street isnt too wide, the look of the building are the last thing i look at.
i'm more bothered by how ugly the cars are than the age of the buildings.. lol.
Who gets to decide what is pleasurable or not? seems subjective to me. If i was used to living in a dense and urban environment and i was used to commuting by foot.... i can't see myself just giving up on walking if i move to an area where the buildings are too new...
just seems a little strange to me.
I guess i am honestly just more used to walking or something and aren't really that picky.
Places that have lots of people are walking around is an indication of walkability.
(But it's not the only indication. You see lots of people walking around
in the financial district of NYC for example but they are only there for work).
Quote:
Originally Posted by iNviNciBL3
A place like this https://www.google.com/maps/@51.4538...CwbKUIKxrg!2e0
would be very comfortable for me to walk in, probably safe, low traffic, sidewalk almost at level with street, street isnt too wide, the look of the building are the last thing i look at.
i'm more bothered by how ugly the cars are than the age of the buildings.. lol.
Judging by the number of cars and lack of pedestrians here, this is a place where people are driving to, not walking to. Not surprising since it's just a back alley. There's nothing about it that makes people want to go for a stroll or want to hang out on that street. It's just a place to park your car.
Quote:
Originally Posted by iNviNciBL3
the look of the building are the last thing i look at.
i'm more bothered by how ugly the cars are than the age of the buildings.. lol.
That's a pretty contradictory statement isn't it?
Why would you care about how the cars look but not the buildings?
Why do people like to drive nice-looking cars, wear nice looking clothes? Why do we prefer to walk in a beautiful garden to walking in a barren desert? Why do we want to live in a nice-looking house as opposed to ugly ones?
Same with buildings. People prefer nice-looking buildings. Though the way the buildings look are probably more important from the perspective and speed of the pedestrian. At the speed and perspective of a driver, it doesn't matter. The uglier the buildings on the street, the faster you probably want to drive to get past it as quickly as possible, so you don't have to look at it for too long. Which explains why you say you care only about how the cars look (you're a driver). It's human nature. Humans are very visual. The visual appearance of our environment has a psychological effect on us whether we're conscious of it or not.
Exactly! The concepts of what makes an area walkable are pretty simple. The fact that some people can't (or won't) understand, shows how little some know about the built environment.
I dunno, Eddyline! I've done a lot of walking, and the only thing I was ever concerned about was my personal safety. I don't need buskers, fire jugglers and the like that they have on the Pearl St. Pedestrian Mall in Boulder to make walking enjoyable.
I dunno, Eddyline! I've done a lot of walking, and the only thing I was ever concerned about was my personal safety. I don't need buskers, fire jugglers and the like that they have on the Pearl St. Pedestrian Mall in Boulder to make walking enjoyable.
Are you walking to anything when you walk or are you just walking?
Places that have lots of people are walking around is an indication of walkability.
(But it's not the only indication. You see lots of people walking around
in the financial district of NYC for example but they are only there for work).
Why would that make the Financial District unwalkable? This is just on the edge of the financial district, looks like not everyone is walking there to their office:
Note the area has less trees than the German city Invicible linked to?
Quote:
Judging by the number of cars and lack of pedestrians here, this is a place where people are driving to, not walking to. Not surprising since it's just a back alley. There's nothing about it that makes people want to go for a stroll or want to hang out on that street. It's just a place to park your car.
There are no cars driving on the street, either. All the cars in the area are parked, not moving. It's likely the streetview took the view in early morning. While the architecture isn't exactly stunning, I don't think it's not that bad, either just ok for a downtown. While there's obviously parking around, I doubt it's ample enough that it's worth driving and reparking a short distance, most would find it easier to walk to get to stores / offices once they parked their car (or took transit). Skimming the city, this street nearby gives off a feeling being less than pedestrian friendly:
The sidewalk going through the underpass plus little on street level on a wide-ish road and just something about the streetscape gives a feeling of an area that was designed with the assumption of most driving through rather than walking.
Oh, just ambling around. I have so much free time, that's how I spend part of it.
Actually, I walk with a friend in the morning and we walk to a local park, turn around and walk home. Same walk, almost every walking session. Even when we do change it a bit, it's still around the 'hood where we've lived for 25+ years.
As a kid and into my early 20s, I did a lot of walking for transportation. Walk to the store, buy my dad a pack of cigarettes, buy my mom a carton of milk, that type of thing when a kid. Walk to work mostly as a young adult, also walk to shopping, etc before we had a car.
Oh, just ambling around. I have so much free time, that's how I spend part of it.
Actually, I walk with a friend in the morning and we walk to a local park, turn around and walk home. Same walk, almost every walking session. Even when we do change it a bit, it's still around the 'hood where we've lived for 25+ years.
As a kid and into my early 20s, I did a lot of walking for transportation. Walk to the store, buy my dad a pack of cigarettes, buy my mom a carton of milk, that type of thing when a kid. Walk to work mostly as a young adult, also walk to shopping, etc before we had a car.
Walking is a healthy activity, so good for you for walking regularly. Though it doesn't sound like there is much to walk to where you are walking. Which is a very common trait with suburban areas. I grew up in a suburban area and the only thing that was within walking distance was the park. Anything else had to be done by car, there really wasn't any other option where I grew up.
Walking is a healthy activity, so good for you for walking regularly. Though it doesn't sound like there is much to walk to where you are walking. Which is a very common trait with suburban areas. I grew up in a suburban area and the only thing that was within walking distance was the park. Anything else had to be done by car, there really wasn't any other option where I grew up.
Sorry, I can only assume what you write. Based on your post about walking, you stated you walk to the nearby park a lot, but didn't state you walk anywhere else. If you don't want the assumption being made, you are free to expand on where else you walk to.
Sorry, I can only assume what you write. Based on your post about walking, you stated you walk to the nearby park a lot, but didn't state you walk anywhere else. If you don't want the assumption being made, you are free to expand on where else you walk to.
Or maybe we could just not analyze each other's location and lifestyles deeply? Find an actual location as an example instead of asking about personal habits.
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