Third, creating pedestrian-friendly environments can reduce pollution, oil import costs, and congestion costs. Fourth, encouraging walking helps reduce public health risks and health care costs and improves the overall quality of life in a community. There exists strong evidence that, if conditions were better, people would walk more often. In a Lou Harris poll commissioned by Rodale Press, it was found that 5 percent of those polled indicated that their transportation habits included walking or bicycling. The study also revealed, however, that if facilities existed 13 percent would walk or bike.
Many communities report a positive return on pedestrian investments.
Such walkable communities provide examples and inspiration to people working to improve their own neighborhoods, towns and cities. Set below the noise and fast pace of the street, the Walk invites people to explore art galleries, gift shops, and cafes by day and lively nightclubs and restaurants by night. Boulder, Colorado developed the popular Pearl Street pedestrian mall as one element in a revitalization plan for the city s downtown. What was once a street for cars is now a pedestrian facility that naturally draws people and has become the heart of Boulder s community life. The mixture of shops, restaurants, vendor carts, and offices serves as a draw for pedestrians in all seasons of the year.