UPDATE: 34 Percent of SLZ 'Walkable,' 22 Percent Car-Dependent
A website promoting walkable neighborhoods gives San Lorenzo a score of 58 out of 100.
Editor's Note: An earlier version of this story featured a Walk Score link that produced inaccurate results. This version offers a better link.
Is San Lorenzo a good place for ditching the car and walking?
For 34 percent of residents, the answer is "pretty good," according to a Walk Score study. Unfortunately, 22 percent of San Lorenzo residents live in completely car-dependent neighborhoods.
A sizable 78 percent of the total had a Walk Score of at least 50, according to the study. That is, they live in "somewhat walkable" neighborhoods.
Click here to see a map of the most walkable neighborhoods in San Lorenzo. Green portions are walkable, yellow are so-so and red are car-dependent.
Overall, the town got a decent score of 58 out of 100, which means pretty walkable. Click on the chart at right to see exactly what the scores mean.
Hesperian Boulevard seems to be closest to being a faint-colored green, meaning walkable.
Creators of the Walk Score study used census data, neighborhood boundaries from real estate marketing website Zillow.com, and other sources to calculate "walkability." Residences within a quarter-mile of amenities received the most points.
New York topped the list of the most walkable cities, with a score of 85.3. But San Francisco was a close second, at 84.9. Walk Score ranked about 2,500 cities and more than 10,000 neighborhoods.
Walk Score aims to promote walkable neighborhoods. It says:
"Walkable neighborhoods offer surprising benefits to the environment, our health, our finances, and our communities.
Environment: Cars are a leading cause of climate change. Your feet are zero-pollution transportation machines.
Health: The average resident of a walkable neighborhood weighs 6-10 pounds less than someone who lives in a sprawling neighborhood.
Finances: One point of Walk Score is worth up to $3,000 of value for your property. Read the research report.
Communities: Studies show that for every 10 minutes a person spends in a daily car commute, time spent in community activities falls by 10 percent."
Thomas Clarke
10:35 pm on Tuesday, July 26, 2011
When I look at the color coded map, on the Castro Valley Patch, Cherryland and Fairview are not included in the details. Does anyone know why?
Analisa Harangozo
11:55 am on Wednesday, July 27, 2011
Thomas, my guess is perhaps it's because those are part of different districts. We usually cover Cherryland for SLZ Patch, however. For Fairview, I believe it's considered part of Hayward. So this may be the case...