While it's sometimes nice to go on a long and winding walk, other times you just want to get to where you are going as fast as possible. But some cities have infrastructure with obstacles that make walkability wholly impractical.
One Redditor recently shared the perfect — and unfortunate — example of how industrialized cities can make traveling on foot a nightmare. In the post, the traveler shared a screenshot of a horseshoe-shaped walking route around a highway in Budaörs, Hungary, on the outskirts of Budapest.
If not for the highway, the walk between the traveler's two locations would be about 500 meters — or about 0.3 miles. When accounting for circumventing the winding motorway, the walk is 3.8 kilometers — or a staggering 2.4 miles.
"It takes 52 minutes to walk," the poster wrote.
It's an extreme example of how impassable cities often are to those seeking to walk. Unfortunately, blocked sidewalks, impractical routes, or unsafe walkways are commonplace in metro cities around the globe.
"The world has become toxic to anyone outside of a vehicle," one commenter lamented.
And that fact has walkers willing to go to dangerous lengths just to reach their desired location.
"I'd simply risk walking over the exit ramp," another commenter added. Several others "upvoted" the comment, indicating they'd do the same.
Though it's a time-saving alternative, it's also a risky one, but it indicates how desperate people are for speedy and practical walking routes in metro cities.
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Experts say that access to safe sidewalks is a key way to get communities to engage with the outdoors, which has positive physical, emotional, and mental health benefits.
Ensuring the walkability of metro spaces is also a way to benefit the environment by minimizing pollution. The United Nations reports the transportation sector is responsible for approximately 25% of the globe's planet-warming pollution.
Even with more climate-minded alternatives available — including the increasing popularity of hybrid and electric vehicles — about 95% of the world's transport energy still comes from polluting sources. Walking, or even traveling on foot to public transit, can help curb that massive impact.
But to reap the benefits of walking, sidewalks must be accessible and practical. If cities improve walkable infrastructure, experts estimate metro areas could reduce their transport-related fuel consumption by 25% or more, according to data from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change cited by America Walks.
To spur change, it's essential to keep pressure on city officials, state representatives, and global governments to increase the walkability of cities. While you may not be able to lay your own concrete slabs, you can pave the way to a more walkable future through advocacy. And noticing the problem is the first step to a more walkable future.
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