Walkability indices - the state of the art and future directions : a systematic review

Venerandi, Alessandro and Mellen, Hal and Romice, Ombretta and Porta, Sergio (2024) Walkability indices - the state of the art and future directions : a systematic review. Sustainability, 16 (16). 6730. ISSN 2071-1050 (https://doi.org/10.3390/su16166730)

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Abstract

This systematic review aims to illustrate the state of the art of walkability indices and future research directions. A comprehensive search in the general Google database and Google Scholar identified a total of 45 records published between 2005 and 2023. Using a selection process based on the PRISMA model, 32 records were identified as meeting the inclusion criteria. These are organized incrementally, highlighting their novelty relative to preceding studies, and divided into sectors of prevalent application. The 5Ds theory provides a first contribution by identifying walkability metrics based on proximity to amenities, land use diversity, and density. Recent advancements, leveraging GIS systems and open data, have expanded such metrics to include green spaces, footpath design, and noise pollution. However, these developments remain largely tied to the catchment area logic and offer coarse descriptions of the built environment’s morphological structure, often lacking justification for metric selection and weighting. To address these shortcomings, future research should use more detailed descriptions of urban form, balance metric comprehensiveness with data availability, employ robust methods for metric selection, and explore alternative weighting techniques based on cognitive and emotional responses to urban settings. These efforts are crucial for advancing the understanding and measurement of walkability in the context of the compact city and place-making paradigms.

ORCID iDs

Venerandi, Alessandro ORCID logoORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4887-0120, Mellen, Hal, Romice, Ombretta ORCID logoORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5776-5632 and Porta, Sergio;
  • Item type:Article
    ID code:90119
    Dates:
    Date
    Event
    6 August 2024
    Published
    29 July 2024
    Accepted
    19 February 2024
    Submitted
    Subjects:Fine Arts > Architecture
    Department:Faculty of Engineering > Architecture
    Depositing user: Pure Administrator
    Date deposited:05 Aug 2024 10:16
    Last modified:18 Oct 2024 07:08
    URI:https://strathprints.strath.ac.uk/id/eprint/90119
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