The topic of Red Bank’s “walkability” has cropped up on a few occasions lately, usually in connection with the development of the town’s “transit village” but also referred to by Councillor Blackwood in a recent article published by Sustainable Jersey, an organisation promoting the work of New Jersey municipalities, councils, and it would appear, local officials.
In the article, Cllr Blackwood says that the town has “a walkability rating exceeding 90%”, a claim which seems to be based on Walk Score‘s assessment of the town as a “Walker’s Paradise” with a score of 95. The town’s Bike Score seems more realistic at 60, although it should be below 49 by Walk Score’s own criteria.
So, what is Walk Score, and how is it assessed?
A recent investigation by researchers from the University of California, Berkley, into Walk Score’s methodology found that:
“… Census tracts that were rated most highly by the popular real estate algorithm mapped almost exactly onto the census tracts with the highest share of white residents — and a literature review suggested that the same thing is likely true in other dense urban areas.”
Walk Score is a website which prioritises the proximity of amenities such as restaurants and destination stores. The website is a vital resource for the real estate business in attracting potential buyers.
Unfortunately, it appears to have very little relevance to pedestrian and cyclist safety…
“… Aside from some proprietary information about block and intersection density, the scoring system behind Walk Score focuses almost exclusively on the simple proximity of nearby amenities — and ignores things like pedestrian crash rates, the quality of pedestrian infrastructure or policy, and even what percentage of people actually walk rather than drive.”
However, it can’t be said that realtors are not supportive of the town given their generous donation of bicycle racks, and, of course, their munificent contributions to the mayor and council’s individual election campaigns.
The full article can be found on Streetsblog, “Is ‘Walk Score’ Really Just a ‘White Score’?”
