Walkability is the ability to safely walk between homes and businesses, transit stations, and other amenities in a reasonably short amount of time. Promoting walkable neighborhoods and cities reduces the need for personal vehicles and carbon emissions, gives citizens more freedom to access services and businesses, and encourages high-density infill development that makes use of existing resources and infrastructure. Planners can promote walkable design by incentivizing infill, eliminating parking requirements, and investing in robust public transit and mixed-use development that puts businesses closer to where their customers live and work.

Walkability Courses

aerial view of suburban homes
The Story of Sprawl - With Commentary Tracks
Tim Halbur
143 Mins
pedestrians and bicyclist in helsinki
Women and Cities 5: The Feminist Future City
Katrina Johnston-Zimmerman
59 Mins
  • CIP
  • AIA CES
  • AICP CM
  • SACPLAN CPD
cars and buses on busy street with metro train in background
Transportation Planning: The Role of Transportation Systems in Social and Economic Life
Richard Willson
47 Mins
  • AIA CES
  • AICP CM
  • CNU-A
  • SACPLAN CPD
Train in City
Introduction to Transit Service Policy
Jarrett Walker
105 Mins
  • CIP
  • AIA CES
  • AICP CM
exterior of leed building
Greening the Neighborhood: LEED-ND Core Concepts
Eliot Allen
29 Mins
  • AICP CM
  • SACPLAN CPD
screen capture of the four panelists
The Future of Cities After COVID-19
James Brasuell, Allison Arieff, Mariela Alfonzo, Scott Frazier, William Fulton
57 Mins
  • AICP CM
  • SACPLAN CPD
black and white image of a crosswalk light with a green walking man and a red hanging man
Walkable City 2: The Useful Walk
Jeff Speck
82 Mins
  • CIP
  • AIA CES
  • AICP CM
storefronts lined on sidewalk
Frontage Types and the Public Realm
72 Mins
  • AIA CES
  • AICP CM
  • CNU-A
  • SACPLAN CPD
Denver union station with city skyline aerial photo
Introduction to Transit Oriented Development
John Hersey
51 Mins
  • CIP
  • AIA CES
  • AICP CM
  • SACPLAN CPD
cars in traffic emitting pollution
Transportation Planning: Effects on the Environment, Health, and Social Justice
Richard Willson
57 Mins
  • AIA CES
  • AICP CM
  • CNU-A
  • SACPLAN CPD
Sketch of a mixed-use street scene
Placemaking for Innovation: Creating Innovation Ecosystems
David Dixon
50 Mins
  • CIP
  • AICP CM
view of downtown minneapolis from bridge
Greening the Neighborhood: LEED-ND Metrics
Eliot Allen
65 Mins
  • AICP CM
  • SACPLAN CPD
still from the movie of two people walking on sidewalk with trees and buildings in the background
Lewis Mumford on the City 4: The Heart of the City
29 Mins
  • AICP CM
Car crashed into interstate wall with firefighters and people pointing.
Walkable City 3: The Safe Walk (A)
Jeff Speck
77 Mins
  • CIP
  • AIA CES
  • AICP CM
aerial view of ancient city grid
The American City, Part 1: A Brief History of the Regular Grid
Mark David Major
47 Mins
  • AIA CES
  • AICP CM
aerial of denver with buildings and transit
Equitable Transit Oriented Development
John Hersey
57 Mins
  • CIP
  • AIA CES
  • AICP CM
  • SACPLAN CPD
metro train with buildings in background
Transportation Planning: Land Use and Transportation Systems
Richard Willson
62 Mins
  • AIA CES
  • AICP CM
  • CNU-A
  • SACPLAN CPD
sculpture in an urban plaza
Design for Peace and Democracy
Kristin Faurest
50 Mins
  • CIP
  • AICP CM
leed buildings with green space in foreground
Greening the Neighborhood: LEED-ND Globally and v.4 Update
Eliot Allen
51 Mins
  • AICP CM
  • SACPLAN CPD
bicyclists with city bus in background in santa monica
Incorporating the Sustainable Development Goals into the Planning Process
Chris Holtkamp
66 Mins
  • CIP
  • AIA CES
  • AICP CM
  • SACPLAN CPD
View on pedestrian crossing and bike way in city
Walkable City 4: The Safe Walk (B)
Jeff Speck
82 Mins
  • CIP
  • AIA CES
  • AICP CM
aerial view of los angeles at night
The American City, Part 2: The Invention of a New Scale
Mark David Major
50 Mins
  • AIA CES
  • AICP CM
city skyline
A New Era of Downtown Opportunity: The Intersection of Housing and Innovation
David Dixon
65 Mins
  • AIA CES
  • AICP CM
aerial view of cars at large intersection
Transportation Planning: Travel Behavior Principles and Modelling Approaches
Richard Willson
55 Mins
  • AIA CES
  • AICP CM
  • CNU-A
  • SACPLAN CPD

Top Walkability Instructors

David Dixon

David is well known for helping create new, mixed-use urban districts (in both cities and suburbs)...

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Richard Willson

Richard Willson is a professor in the Department of Urban and Regional Planning at California State...

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Jeff Speck

Jeff Speck is a city planner who advocates internationally for more walkable cities.

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Eliot Allen

Eliot Allen, certified, LEED AP-ND, is an urban planner and Principal with Criterion Planners of Portland...

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Mark David Major

Dr. Mark David Major, AICP, CNU-A is a Professor of Urban Design at the Savannah College...

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Lennart Nout

Lennart is an urban mobility design consultant, specializing in design and planning of bicycle networks and...

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Kristin Faurest

Kristin Faurest is a public garden education and outreach professional, author, and landscape architecture educator, committed...

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Adam Fine

Adam is the Director of experiential graphic design at Nova Scotia-based Fathom Studio and has worked...

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Geoffrey Ferrell

Geoffrey is one of the originators of the modern practice of Form-Based Codes. His work ranges...

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Jarrett Walker

Jarrett Walker is an international consultant in public transit network design and policy, with 25 years...

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John Hersey

John is a planner with two decades of experience critically evaluating and advancing transit-oriented development as...

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Katrina Johnston-Zimmerman

Katrina is a lecturer, researcher, and advocate for heart-centered cities. Her work focuses on human behavior...

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Donald Shoup

Donald Shoup is Distinguished Research Professor in the Department of Urban Planning at UCLA. His research...

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Lisa Nisenson

Lisa Nisenson has 20 years of experience and leadership in smart growth, sustainable development and civic...

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Daniel Parolek

Daniel Parolek is a nationally recognized thought leader in architecture, design, and urban planning, specifically in...

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Victor Dover

Victor Dover is a town planner and urban designer with 29 years of leadership in the...

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Mary Madden

Mary Madden has nearly 20 years of experience in the fields of urban planning and design...

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Tim Halbur

Tim Halbur is communications director for the Congress for the New Urbanism (CNU), the leading organization...

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Mike Lydon

Mike Lydon is a Principal of The Street Plans Collaborative.

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Thomas Hamed

Thomas Hamed, AICP is a transportation planner who specializes in commuter transportation and mobility for all...

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Jonathan Katz-Ouziel

Jonathan Katz-Ouziel is an autistic planner, an independent accessibility consultant, and the founder of Opossum House...

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Angie Schmitt

Angie Schmitt is a writer and founder of 3MPH Planning and Consulting, a Cleveland-based firm focused...

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Lance Freeman

Lance Freeman is a Professor in the Urban Planning Program at Columbia University in New York...

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Dave Amos

Dave is an Assistant Professor in the Department of City and Regional Planning at Cal Poly...

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All Walkability Courses

The Future of Cities After COVID-19

The Future of Cities After COVID-19

Instructor: James Brasuell

This virtual panel discussion focuses on the potential for the COVID-19 pandemic to influence the development, demographic, and environmental trends of the future. Speakers: Allison Arieff, William Fulton, Scott Frazier, and Mariela Alfonzo. Moderator: James Brasuell.

4.14
57 Mins
AICP CM
SACPLAN CPD
Free
Legal Issues in Sign Codes

Legal Issues in Sign Codes

Instructor: James Carpentier

This course provides basic knowledge of the legal issues involved in sign codes, focusing on constitutionally-compliant sign codes in the aftermath of U.S. Supreme Court's recent decision in Reed v Town of Gilbert

4.17
59 Mins
AICP CM
Free
Regulating Electronic Message Centers

Regulating Electronic Message Centers

Instructor: James Carpentier

This course provides practical, solution-focused guidance for regulations that leverage digital sign technology while protecting community aesthetic values and safety concerns. This course is available for free.

4.19
49 Mins
AICP CM
CNU-A
SACPLAN CPD
Free

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