an teach you so much about where you are
Published: May 13, 2022 5.00pm BST
Author
Aled Mark Singleton
Research Fellow in Geography, Swansea University

Disclosure statement
Dr Aled Mark Singleton receives funding from the Economic and Social Research Council, grant reference ES/W007568/1.

Partners
Swansea University

Swansea University provides funding as a member of The Conversation UK.

The Conversation UK receives funding from these organisations

View the full list

Email
Twitter1
Facebook
LinkedIn
Print
During lockdown in 2020, governments across the world encouraged people to take short walks in their neighbourhoods. Even before COVID hit though, amid the renewal of city centres and environmental and public health concerns, walking was promoted in many places as a form of active travel, to replace car journeys.

This resurgence in urban walking has been a long time coming. Our first baby steps might still be celebrated. But since the explosion of car use in the 1950s, people in Europe and North America have walked less and less.

UK transport statistics show an annual increase of about 4.8 billion passenger motor vehicle miles (from car and taxi use) in the four decades to 1990. The last decade of the 20th century saw that growth slow. But until recently, our collective motor use just kept climbing.

The pandemic changed that. Passenger motor vehicle miles decreased by over 68 billion. And surveys suggest that 38% of the people who took up walking as a new pursuit aim to stick with it. My research shows walking is more than an activity: it both ties you to where you are and unlocks your memories.
How walking connects you to your city
In the 2000s, as part of their Rescue Geography project, geographers Paul Evans and Phil Jones facilitated group walks in the Eastside district of Birmingham, Britain’s third largest city. The idea was to “rescue” local people’s understandings of an area before it is redeveloped.

Read more - https://theconversation.com/walking-is-a-state-of-mind-it-can-teach-you-so-much-about-where-you-are-173875