A new procedure using network analysis and kernel density estimations to evaluate the effect of urban configurations on pedestrian mobility. The case study of Vitoria -Gasteiz

Walking as a stand-alone transport mode has recently been the focus of attention by researchers, urban planners and the public. The reasons are multiple and involve health, economic, social and environmental issues. City planners are implementing new urban configurations aimed at providing global solutions for environmental and mobility challenges by improving the availability and quality of the public space for walking. The aim of this paper is to provide a procedure to evaluate the impact of obstacles to pedestrian mobility and walkability -understanding obstacles as street crossings where pedestrians must wait to continue their route. The procedure combines the calculation of travel time on minimum cost routes and network kernel density estimations. The implementation of a new urban configuration in a medium sized city in northern Spain -the superblocks model in Vitoria-Gasteiz city- serves as a case study. The main results show that the implementation of the superblocks reduces pedestrian travel times by approximately 4-5%, and that the greatest improvements in pedestrian mobility due to the reduction of obstacles are found in areas in the city centre or in streets linking important residential areas with the centre. The procedure has been demonstrated to be useful for urban and transport planners to identify priority areas of action and to evaluate pedestrian movements and walkability under new urban configurations.