Walking College 2016- Module #1 “Why Walking”

Monday, June 13 – Friday, June 24

Learning Objectives

After completing this Module, Fellows will be able to:

• Discuss why people walk and the history of car-oriented design in the US
• Identify the cross-cutting co-benefits of walking and walkable communities
• Explain how walkable communities increase social equity while gentrification reduces it
• Summarize the Surgeon General’s Call to Action and the principles of Vision Zero, Safe Routes to School, and Complete Streets campaigns
• Research, understand, and communicate data to support campaigns

Study Materials

Read or view the following study materials (asterisked items* are provided primarily as reference sources, and may be skim-read; total estimated time, 5 hours):

• Walking as a Practice
  • Thinking and Feeling – While Taking a Walk (video blog by Maira Kalman)
  • Walking as a Practice* (report and 11 case studies by Jonathon Stalls)

• Walkability and Livability
  • What is Walkability? How Do You Measure It?, (blog post by Project for Public Spaces)
  • Every City Should Have a Law of Two Words: Pedestrians First (video blog by Gil Penalosa)
  • The Walkable City (TED talk by Jeff Speck)
  • AARP Livability Index* (interactive tool by AARP)

• Benefits of Walking and Walkable Communities
  • Health Benefits (Steps to a Walkable Community fact sheet)
  • Safety Benefits (Steps to a Walkable Community fact sheet)
  • Transportation Benefits (Steps to a Walkable Community fact sheet)
  • Economic Benefits (Steps to a Walkable Community fact sheet)
  • Good Walking is Good Business (blog post by WalkBoston)
  • Social Equity Benefits (Steps to a Walkable Community fact sheet)
  • The Problems of Success in the New Urban Era (article by Robert Steuteville)

• Model Campaigns for Walking and Walkable Communities
  • Step It Up! (executive summary of the Surgeon General’s Call to Action to Promote Walking and Walkable Communities)
  • Vision Zero (letter from New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio)
  • Vision Zero Action Plan (powerpoint presentation by New York City)
  • Safe Routes to School 101 (article by the Safe Routes to School National Partnership)
  • The 6 Es of Safe Routes to School (article by the Safe Routes to School National Partnership)
  • Getting Started in Your Community (article by the Safe Routes to School National Partnership)
  • Complete Streets Policy Development 101 (powerpoint presentation by the National Complete Streets Coalition)

• Modern Trends in Walking
  • Traditional Development Is a Municipal Gold Mine (article by Chuck Marohn)
  • What Millennials Want (article by Anthony Flint, Citylab)
  • Walkable Cities Mean Safety and Socialization for Aging in Place (article by Kathy Birkett)
  • Walking is Going Places (article by Jay Walljasper)
  • America in 2015: A ULI Survey of Views on Housing, Transportation, and Community* (long-form report by Urban Land Institute)

• Data Collection and Analysis
  • Collecting Pedestrian Data (Steps to a Walkable Community fact sheet)
  • Seattle Pedestrian Master Plan – Methodology and Analysis (appendix to master plan by City of Seattle)
  • Mean Streets: Who Is Dying in Traffic Crashes and Why (report and database by WNYC public radio)
  • Dangerous by Design 2014* (long-form report by the National Complete Streets Coalition)
  • 2016 Benchmarking Report* (long-form report by Alliance for Biking and Walking)

Community Activities

Complete the following activities (estimated time, 2 hours):

• Read about Walk Score and find the Walk Scores of your community and other communities you are familiar with.
• Find people who are walking in your community and conduct brief interviews – why are they walking?, what do they like about walking here?, what makes walking difficult?
• Research one or two recent media stories about walking and/or walkability in your community.

Webinar: “Why Walking and Walkability?”

• Speaker: Mark Fenton (Tufts University)
• Summary: Join America’s best-known Walking Champion, Mark Fenton, for an inspiring presentation on why walking and walkability matter. A former competitive race-walker, Mark will explain why walking has been central to human existence throughout our history until we lost our way in the twentieth century, and how the walking advocacy movement has worked to repair the damage in the last 20 years. Most importantly, he will lay out actions and strategies that enable everyone to contribute to making our communities more walkable and increasing walking as a practice.
• Additional Resources
  • Mark Fenton Answers to Webinar Questions
  • Mark Fenton Thoughts and Resources on Equity 

Discussion Forum

Make notes related to the following prompts and be prepared to share your thoughts during the discussion forum (estimated time, 2 hours):

• Prompt #1: What are the “community co-benefits of walking?”
• Prompt #2: What is the difference between “walking” and “walkability” and how do they relate to each other?
• Prompt #3: How successful/effective is the Surgeon General’s Call to Action?