According to recent rankings by The Daily Green, San Francisco is America’s “most walkable city.”
1. San Francisco, CA
The city is known for its stable, relatively mild climate and progressive viewpoints, and 90% of San Francisco residents have a Walk Score of 70 or above, while 99% have a Walk Score of at least 50. Only 1% live in so-called car-dependent neighborhoods. The top areas are Chinatown, the Financial District, Downtown and North Beach.
The Daily Green actually based their scores on a nifty website, walkscore.com. Walk Score is a smart google mash-up that scores a location based on how many businesses and civic institutions are within walking distance. They also describe San Francisco’s walk-ability:
Explore San Francisco’s Most Walkable Neighborhoods
The top 17 neighborhoods in San Francisco are Walkers’ Paradises. 90% of San Francisco residents have a Walk Score of 70 or above. 99% have a Walk Score of at least 50—and 1% live in Car-Dependent neighborhoods.
On their site you can explore by neighborhood or enter in your address.
Speaking of Walk Score, it looks like San Francisco has sucked another talented individual into are sphere of joyousness. I happened upon the site of Lee Byron, who is planning his move to the SF Bay. He does charming things with technology. His most recent project is to make a giant walkability map of San Francisco, by mashing the Walk Score mash-up. His page is full of interesting projects; I certainly spent more time than I should have purusing them. Now if only we can convince John Stewart to take the plunge…
