On the Nature of Walking and Learning Pedestrian Environments

Abstract

This phase of a one-year urban design research project focuses on the question of how to measure variables that impact walking for health, spiritual renewal and commuting and how to design to encourage pedestrians to walk. The results of this phase of the research project contribute to (1) identification of significant environmental variables to which pedestrians respond, (2) the creation of a video and still imagery archive of ranked pedestrian spatial sequences, and (3) a data base for pedestrian design . The research project is attached to a landscape architecture design studio at Texas A&M University. A multi-disciplinary team of graduate students oversees the literature research, the technical video and graphic support and the development of software technology. A videographic data base of a variety of pedestrian spatial sequences, with both qualitative and quantitative attributes has emerged as a result of the research to date. The case studies used in the research are specific pedestrian routes that the students selected based upon their everyday experience of commuting, health and spiritual renewal walks.