Are people really walking with their feet ten feet off of Beale? According to Walk Score, a website dedicated to promoting more walkable communities, Memphis has the highest average walkability scores in Tennessee. But that may come as a surprise to some people who live here.
Amongst other factors, Walk Score studies nearby walking routes to available resources, like grocery stores and medical offices, and awards points. The more that is available within a walking distance the more points are awarded.
While Memphis’s score may be the highest in Tennessee, compared to other cities of its size the score is less impressive. Memphis scores a 35 out of 100. Austin, Tex., while still considered a car-dependent city, has a walkability score of 42. However, Philadelphia is known as very walkable with a score of 75 out of 100.
Senior Maya Iyengar, who lives in East Memphis, said she is surprised that Memphis holds the top spot in terms of walkability.
“I [thought] suburbs would have high scores… because people can just walk around their neighborhood,” she said. “Or even Nashville because it’s a big city, and there’s a lot of things to do. I just wouldn’t expect Memphis.”
Even though she lives close to school, Iyengar drives to school instead of walking.
And she’s not alone. But the city does have some pockets of walkability.
Junior Maggie Taylor said she loves living in Midtown, an area east of downtown that is home to the zoo, parks and multiple cultural institutions.
“I live really close to Overton Park, Overton Square and Crosstown Concourse,” she said. “If you’re trying to get somewhere in Midtown, it’s normally pretty walkable.”
Out in the suburb of Germantown, upper school history teacher Emily Metz has a similar experience. She said she enjoys walking around her neighborhood on a regular basis.
“Oh, it’s wonderful. I can walk to several different grocery stores, the library, the gym, several restaurants and it’s really nice because you don’t have to get in the car and go somewhere,” she said. “You can just take a little stroll up to Trader Joe’s and get what you need for dinner and then walk home. It’s delightful.”
If you go even further out, other walkable communities exist. Sophomore Louise Cole lives in Eads, Tenn., which is 30 minutes away from school.
Cole loves to bike and walk around her neighborhood, especially since there are plenty of private parks.
“There’s less crime [in my neighborhood] than there is in Memphis,” she said, which makes it feel safer than walking in the city.
Even right here in East Memphis, some students find walking a good choice.
Freshman Molly Jacobs walks to school. For her, walkability is a part of her daily routine.
“I walk with my friend, and it’s a nice start to the day,” she said, “I’m fifteen and can’t drive, so it’s either walking or getting a ride from my parents.”
Despite these walkable areas, Memphis still struggles.
Walk Score ratings are calculated based on intersection density, residential density and accessibility of grocery stores, parks and restaurants. According to a parking study, the large quantity of parking lots in Memphis, especially downtown, leads to loss of space for safe and direct pedestrian crossings, good public transport access and wide, well-lit, tree-lined walkways and footpaths.
However, there are people working on the problem.
In an email, Dewayne Williams, Director of Park Operations for Shelby Farms, explained some ways Memphis is increasing its walkability, such as through the construction of a new connector trail between the Chickasaw Trail and the exit road.
“This makes it possible for an additional certified 5K route that is wheelchair and stroller-friendly,” Williams wrote.
Williams also helps oversee the Shelby Farms Greenline, a rails-to-trails project that transformed an unused railroad line into a 10.65 miles long, paved trail and connects pedestrians and cyclists in Midtown Memphis through Shelby Farms Park to Cordova. He was pleased that the Greenline will be expanding again.
“We are excited that construction is expected to begin soon to extend the Shelby Farms Greenline,” he wrote.
The Lenow Greenline Extension will extend the Greenline by approximately two miles from its current eastern end at the old train depot in Cordova to Lenow Road.
In June, the City of Memphis also completed construction for improvements to the pedestrian and cyclist crosswalk at the intersection of Walnut Grove Road and Farm Road. This includes new guard rails, raised crosswalks, barriers and bollards.
“We appreciate the city making these safety improvements,” Williams wrote.
Williams is not the only one excited to see Memphis become more walkable in the future.
“I’m glad there’s a big initiative in Memphis right now to make it an even more walkable city,” Taylor said. “like adding lots and lots of bike lanes, adding to the green line and all sorts of things to make it better.”
