The Best Places

Best cities for walking

Writing by Rich on March 8, 2007

The American Podiatric Medical Association has released their list of the best cities for walking in the U.S. Before we get to it, I want to note the cities in our list of candidates for the best places to live. Colorado Springs came in pretty high at number 13, Albuquerque less so at number 45, and Tucson a scary 86.

But I have to take this all with a grain of salt. Charlotte, NC, near where I grew up, was referred to back then as “Car Lot,” yet it came in at number 4. Madison, Wisconsin, with less than ideal weather, came in at number 1. The heaviest weighted criterion was being a “walkable community,” which might explain how Madion overcame their climate obstcles to make number one.
Here are some of their reasons for the top ten:

1. Madison, WI: Adopted a walker-friendly plan 10 years ago, and it shows.
2. Austin, TX: 50 trails, from a quarter to 10 miles long.
3. San Francisco, CA: The most parks per square mile.
4. Charlotte, NC: 40% of its residents walk for exercise.
5. Seattle, WA: Gorgeous views of Puget Sound and snowcapped mountains.
6. Henderson, NV: With an average yearly rainfall of 4.5 inches, you can walk everyday.
7. San Diego, CA: A unique choice of beach, desert and mountain routes.
8. San Jose, CA: Perfect walking weather; average temp 61 degrees and low humidity.
9. Chandler, AZ: 6.5 miles of traffic-free walking on its Paseo Trail.
10. Virginia Beach, VA A low crime rate and a boardwalk allow safe, fun strolling

A couple of other cities of note in the Southwest, that we might be interested in, turned up on the list: Henderson, NV at number 5 and Reno, NV at 28. And in case you’re wondering why I didn’t mention Chandler, AZ, neither Phoenix nor any of its suburbs are on our candidate list. It’s just too damn big.

Here’s the full list of the top 100 best cities for walking (PDF).

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