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You're missing big box stores like Walmart which each have tens of thousands of square feet of parking around them for every car which could potentially show up

You're missing big box stores like Walmart which each have tens of thousands of square feet of parking around them for every car which could potentially show up. Many times, these giant parking lots are mandated by law, so each grocery store has a parking lot, and each school has a parking lot. When you total it up, there are hundreds of places you could theoretically park your car, mostly mandated by law to exist. It makes all infrastructure bigger: you house is further from the store because you have to drive past a bunch of parking lots. If you go to a place that isn't driving dependent and you'll see that the main factor for "better walkability" is namely "places are a few miles closer because you don't have to walk through 20 parking lots to get there". It's pretty eye opening.

giantg2 3y ago
"If you go to a place that isn't driving dependent and you'll see that the main factor for "better walkability" is namely "places are a few miles closer because you don't have to walk through 20 parking lots to get there"." That's not really the main factor. I would say the main factor is medium to high density, mixed use areas that have business friendly regulations and/or wealthy residents/tourists. There aren't tons of large parking lots in west Philly, but I wouldn't give it a high walkability score given all the vacancies (where are you going to walk to?) and safety concerns (both in infrastructure and crime terms).
- deleted 3y ago
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- afiori 3y ago
  The aneddotical example of when it can be the main factor is the famous Houston In The 70' photo: https://i.redd.it/rdh7zsqvz5q01.jpg https://i.redd.it/rdh7zsqvz5q01.jpg
  - giantg2 3y ago
    Still, not really. Even going with that picture, this is still a better description "medium to high density, mixed use areas that have business friendly regulations and/or wealthy residents/tourists.", as one could get rid of the parking lots, but that wouldn't make it necessarily better unless it's also mixed zoning (eg if those are all office buildings, you still have to drive to get to a restaurant, grocery, etc).
    - afiori 3y ago
      My argument is that no city with this many parking lots can be walkable, not that removing them would make it walkable. Not being 90% empty space is a necessary condition for walkability.

giantg2 3y ago

"If you go to a place that isn't driving dependent and you'll see that the main factor for "better walkability" is namely "places are a few miles closer because you don't have to walk through 20 parking lots to get there"." That's not really the main factor. I would say the main factor is medium to high density, mixed use areas that have business friendly regulations and/or wealthy residents/tourists. There aren't tons of large parking lots in west Philly, but I wouldn't give it a high walkability score given all the vacancies (where are you going to walk to?) and safety concerns (both in infrastructure and crime terms).

deleted 3y ago
[deleted]
afiori 3y ago
The aneddotical example of when it can be the main factor is the famous Houston In The 70' photo: https://i.redd.it/rdh7zsqvz5q01.jpg https://i.redd.it/rdh7zsqvz5q01.jpg
- giantg2 3y ago
  Still, not really. Even going with that picture, this is still a better description "medium to high density, mixed use areas that have business friendly regulations and/or wealthy residents/tourists.", as one could get rid of the parking lots, but that wouldn't make it necessarily better unless it's also mixed zoning (eg if those are all office buildings, you still have to drive to get to a restaurant, grocery, etc).
  - afiori 3y ago
    My argument is that no city with this many parking lots can be walkable, not that removing them would make it walkable. Not being 90% empty space is a necessary condition for walkability.