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Place-based tools to make 10,000 steps a day possible

Aside from generating benefits to the individual, increasing walking creates wider benefits to society, helping to address climate change, stimulating local economies and reducing public health spend, says Ed Parham

The health benefits of walking as a preventative activity are well publicised, with research identifying 10,000 steps a day as the ideal number. Integrating exercise in daily lifestyles and routines through active commuting would seem to make 10,000 steps an achievable goal. It is estimated by Transport for London that if all Londoners were to walk (or cycle) 20 minutes a day it could save the NHS £1.7b in treatment costs over 25 years, according to the 2017 Healthy Streets for London plan. There is potential however for even greater benefits, since 20 minutes per day is on average just under 2,500 steps a day, significantly less than 10,000!

In 2022, the UK government tasked local authorities with increasing levels of walking to work as an environmentally friendly, health-conscious, preferred mode of travel. The postCOVID period offered the perfect opportunity to try to change people’s behaviour as they transitioned to a ‘new normal’.

To succeed in getting more people to walk to work, local authorities need to ensure that the factors which hinder an individual’s decision to walk to work are removed or mitigated. This involves making sure that people live within walking distance of work, that their town or city is convenient to walk around, that they have the time to undertake the walk, and that they are in good enough health to walk comfortably.

So how can a local authority influence someone’s decision to walk to work, when this is affected by so many changeable variables which, like the weather, they obviously cannot control?

Space Syntax modelling and analysis, developed over the last 30 years, demonstrates how the built environment – the street, pedestrian and public transport networks, land uses and densities –can make certain activities possible or impossible.

These techniques have been used to develop a Walkability Index across Great Britain which shows, at the level of the individual building, how the surrounding environment makes walking possible (see image opposite page, top left).

Space Syntax’s Walkability Index has been validated against walk to work mode share across England’s 330 Local Authorities and almost 7,000 Middle Layer Super Output Areas (MSOAs). It can be combined with census or other datasets held at different geographies. This enables areas of higher risk to be revealed, for example less walkable parts of a city with populations who may be older and less able to walk, or places with high levels of economic deprivation but fewer jobs accessible via active modes or public transport.

Places with higher potential for walking

So, why aren’t people walking more when the conditions seem right for them to do so? Space Syntax analysis can tell local authorities which places are less likely to need large-scale, costly infrastructure projects to encourage people to walk to work – and, importantly, those that will.

Case study

Up until now, this analysis has only been accessible through bespoke consultancy projects. However, it is now available to public sector users through an affordable online tool, LINE/IUM. Public sector decision makers can determine the best type of intervention in an area, be it a ‘nudge’-style public health campaign to encourage active travel, or a service improvement such as enhanced public transport or a physical change to hard infrastructure, such as a new bike lane.

Recently, Space Syntax revealed the places in England with the highest potential to increase levels of walking to work. By combining the Walkability Index with socio-economic and demographic datasets, places that already have the conditions in place to enable more walking were identified – these are shown in the map (above right).

Points from blue to red show areas that score from low to high on the Walkability Index, red areas have the physical conditions in place to support higher levels of walking and may be suitable for behaviour-change campaigns, while blue areas require improvement to the built environment.

Evidence-based quick wins

LINE/IUM can support the development of coordinated interventions for each of the disciplines involved in shaping or responding to the impacts of the built environment.

Public health practitioners: The value of this spatial analysis is that, while it describes the built environment consistently, it can also be combined with additional datasets including demographic/socio-economic characteristics or actual activity data. This makes it possible to identify mismatches where there may be highly walkable areas, but low numbers of people walking. In these areas, interventions need to be shaped by local teams but a consistent dataset, validated against actual walking behaviour, means that multiple, different areas can be compared on a like-forlike basis, and that behaviour change campaigns can be targeted and coordinated alongside plans for physical change.

Transport planners: Planners can use the tools developed by Space Syntax to better identify where the built environment already supports higher active mode shares, then to ensure that transport networks serve these areas. When developing or improving active travel networks, the tools can be used to quickly identify the specific routes most likely to be used by people walking or cycling. For masterplanners, urban designers and architects working within local planning policy, key design parameters for walkability can be defined using the Space Syntax tools. The tools can be used to quickly assess the spatial structure of development proposals.

Town planners: For town planners developing policy, insight from these tools can be used to consider the suitability of sites when allocating housing growth. Identifying that a site is located in an unwalkable area and is poorly connected to wider settlements means it is likely to rely more on private car use.

Access to Space Syntax’s Walkability Index and LINE/IUM tool, as well as the learnings generated by them, can enable multiple professional disciplines and local authority departments to develop coordinated strategies which combine soft and hard interventions around shared, validated, data.

Supporting collaboration between public health, transport, urban design, landscape design and town planning practitioners not only increases the chances of successfully delivering multiple policy objectives and positive outcomes, but can also make better use of public funding. n

Ed Parham is Director & Employee-Owner, Space Syntax Read more about the Walkability Index: https://tinyurl.com/ms5j34px

Space Syntax provides creative expertise in architecture & urban planning. Operating worldwide, we combine global design experience with advanced digital technologies. Our modelling tools forecast the social, economic & environmental impacts of development on mobility, land value, resilience & health. We help shape policies, planning strategies & design proposals that benefit people, property & the environment.

We develop digital modelling tools to forecast the social, economic & environmental performance of buildings & urban places. Our LINE/IUM tool and Walkability Index dataset enables the insights required to deliver coordinated active travel strategies. We train individuals & organisations: from one-off executive training events to multi-session courses. Our training packages cover the principles, methodologies & software tools we employ in urban planning & building design practice. We offer beginner, intermediate and advanced options for practitioners, students and researchers.

Contact:

Ed Parham

e.parham@spacesyntax.com +44 (0)20 7400 1320

www.spacesyntax.com

Tracsis are the largest and longest established transport data collection specialists in the UK and are part of an award-winning transport systems and software business undertaking projects throughout the UK and internationally. We utilise the best and most appropriate technology, techniques, skills and experience available to help deliver data solutions for our customers. Tracsis provide data for the largest and most complex transport modelling projects in the UK ranging from data derived from standard collection methods such as digital video and pneumatic tube, to AI video analytics, advanced ANPR and area-wide mobile phone network data. Please visit our website for more information and for our national and regional contact details.

Contact:

Nick Mather

nick.mather@tracsis.com

+44 (0)1937 833933 www.tracsistraffic.com

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Contact:

sales@trueform.com

+44 (0)20 8561 4959 www.trueform.com / www.trueformdigital.com

Idaso Innovative Data Solutions Operating across the UK, Ireland and the Benelux region, Idaso provides Active Travel data capture solutions alongside traffic and transport surveys. We work with local authorities and consulting engineers, providing empirical data for informed decision making. The company leverages its core technologies in the areas of AI video detection, radar, inductive loop and pneumatic tube detection. Idaso also develops dashboards for both realtime data management and post analysis. Our dashboards are hardware agnostic and serve as a central hub for all your active travel data storage and visualisation needs. Idaso works closely with our sister company GeoMobility to also provide a wide range of probe and floating car data through analysis of big data sources.

Contact:

Ian Kerr

iankerr@idasoltd.com

+44 (0)20 3883 7753 www.idaso.ie Agilysis blends expertise research, policy and practice, drawing on the latest in international research. Our Active Streets Assessment Tool embraces detailed network infrastructure data from Ordnance Survey Master Map, enhanced with additional datasets for individual road sections including network flow, average speeds, 85th percentile speeds, modelled congestion, and collision history. Contact:

Martin Taylor martin.taylor@agilysis.co.uk +44 (0)1295 731811 www.agilysis.co.uk

Papaya is the platform to source, run and manage electric vehicles, especially within the last mile. Our first product is a vehicle management system that connects with a network of vehicle suppliers and service providers to more efficiently manage operations – and purchase vehicles and services –all on one platform. Contact:

Charlie Crawley charlie@papayadash.com

Quick, accurate responses on distance-based eligibility for home-to-school transport. Find the shortest, safe walking route to the nearest school gate using QPaths in seconds. Instant, automatic responses via API or batch process. Also search catchment polygons and nearest suitable school and other eligibility criteria. Contact:

Liz Davidson

liz.davidson@qroutes.co.uk

Camcycle - Cambridge Cycling Campaign Rosamund Humphrey contact@camcycle.org.uk +44 (0)1223 690718

Compass Informatics Phil Baldacchino-Steward

pbaldacchinosteward@compassinformatics.com +44 (0)1937 833933

CycleStreets Ltd - journey planning and data for advocacy/planning Martin Lucas-Smith

info@cyclestreets.net +44 (0)1223 701901

TravelAi Ltd

Andreas Zachariah

zac@travelai.co.uk

+44 (0)7976 717909