Walkable Streets: A Study of Pedestrians’ Perception, and Attitude towards Ngei Street in Machakos Town

Abstract

Street walkability is an indication of the suitability of the built environment to walking. Walkability of any street will increase when safe, comfortable and accessible infrastructure is provided for pedestrians. Urban designs influence how an individual perceives the built environment, including the desirability of walking and all other physical activities involved. Three street factors (accessibility, congestion and cleanliness) along a 900 meters long central segment of Ngei Street in Machakos Town were directly measured by use of standardized questionnaires. The number of pedestrians in the segment was estimated using Fischer's formula and 96 of them where sampled using judgmental technique. Majority (51%) of pedestrians who responded to the questionnaire indicated that the street was wide enough and accessible while 12%, 15%, 3% and 17% strongly agreed, disagreed, neutral and agreed respectively. In addition, the results revealed that densities of movement increase with increased width of the walkways. With little consideration of pedestrians and other road users' this has led to high congestion in Ngei Street which was affirmed by 47% of the majority respondents. Lastly, 56% of the respondent confirmed that the Ngei Street (understudy) was well maintained and clean. This study recommends improvement and addition of non-continuous pedestrian walkways, designation of pedestrian crossing across all street segments to ease traffic management and reduce vehicle congestion in addition to periodic walkways maintenance and regular pavement cleaning.

Commercial Corridor Development Strategy through the Application of the Walkable Commercial Strip Concept in Urban Area of Jember City

“…Walking is the oldest mode of transportation. It is also the most common and cheapest form of transportation available (Kinyingi et al, 2020;Loukaitou-Sideris, 2020;Mutaqqin & Khodizah, 2023;Shaaban, 2019). Aside from that, it also has many positive benefits, ranging from environmental and health benefits to social and economic ones (Sari et al, 2020;Zhou et al, 2019).…”

“…Like any other human behavior, walking is influenced by many internal and external factors. One of these factors is the environment for walking (Kinyingi et al, 2020). As a socially equitable mode of transportation that is most accessible to the masses, several studies agree that it is crucial for walking to be supported by a well-designed built environment that would encourage people, regardless of their backgrounds and abilities, to walk more (Aghaabbasi et al, 2019;Ariffin & Zahari, 2013;Bahari et al, 2013;Oakes et al, 2007;Priyono & Pradoto, 2021;Sari et al, 2020).…”

“…That is because a built urban environment can influence people's perception of spaces and their behavior, determining their everyday actions and lives (D'Acci, 2019). That is why people's perception is one of the important things to consider when evaluating the walking environment, as it informs decision-makers of people's thoughts on it and helps identify and create a safe and desirable walking environment (Kinyingi et al, 2020;Mulia & Manullang, 2018).…”

The Evaluation of Pedestrian Facilities on Hajj Crowd Between Arafat and Muzdalifah Pedestrian Street

“…Hence, it is important for the Saudi government to consider these aspects, particularly for such important event of Hajj pilgrimage. Indeed, street walkability increases when the street offers comfortable, safe and accessible pedestrian infrastructure to its users, (Litman (2016), Kinyingi, Mugwima & Karanja, 2020).When the street offers comfortable environment with smooth pedestrian flow and easily accessible street, the pilgrims would have more time to focus on their Hajj activities, without being distracted by other factors such as being lost or anxious while performing Hajj. Additionally, the Hajj crowd had resulted to stress (Alsolami, Embi, & Enegbuma 2017) and decreased of positive emotion (Kim, Lee, & Sirgy ,2015), which affect the pilgrims' satisfaction.…”