An Empirical Study on Factors of Perceived Walkability
Résumé
We present preliminary results of a pilot empirical study designed to examine factors associated with pedestrians’ perception of walkability, i.e. the perception of the quality, comfort and pleasantness of streets, and their conductivity to walk. This empirical study contributes to the ongoing multidisciplinary effort to pin down factors, their relative importance and theirinteractions, relevant for pedestrians’ perception of walkability, that is to say, of the quality, comfort and pleasantness of streets, and their conductivity to walk. In attempt to describe and explain people’s propensity and decision to walk, their choices of pedestrian route and the qualitative perception thereof, scholars have examined a series of factors, related to individual characteristics (e.g. age, gender, income, etc.), mobility opportunities (e.g.availability of public transportation), trip types (purpose, frequency, available time, etc.), and features of the walking environment (Mateo-Babiano 2016). Our study focuses on this latter family of factors, related to the physical urban environment, and attempts to determine their correlation with the subjective, qualitative perception of the walking environment.