According to a recent report released by LOCUS, and covered by the Detroit Free Press, Detroit is currently ranked 22nd for walk-able urban areas. However, it ranks at a promising 8th place for city with future growth of walk-able urban centers. Detroit has the potential to be walkable.

Branded the “Motor City”, the majority of ours residents travel by car. We’ll move our car from Greektown to the Entertainment District, or from Midtown to Downtown. Or sometimes only a couple of blocks. In no other urban core would this happen. These adjacent parts of the city can and should be traveled by foot. With the proper infrastructure and way-finding, the amount of pedestrian traffic could increase, adding a innumerable amount of benefits to the city. With less vehicular traffic, and more people on foot, we could positively impact congestion, pollution, public health, social connection, local economic development, and human scale urban design.

For my July Impact Project, I chose to address this issue, and take the first step to tackle this feat. Inspired by the National Walk [Your City] organization’s movement, I have created Walk [Detroit]. For the first phase of my initiative, I chose to partner with the Detroit Collaborative Design Center and The Villages Community Development Corporation to increase walk-ability in the Villages of Detroit.

Walk [Detroit] is simple. Simply made, simply installed, simply used. The initiative consists of 8×12 inch signs, installed at several locations throughout the neighborhood. These signs identify neighborhood “destinations” and encourage walk-ability between them by identifying the time needed to travel by foot, making the journey seem reasonable. Additionally, the system integrates technology by QR codes located on the signs. The first of two, links to the Villages CDC’s website, while the second provides information specific to that route, including directions, google maps, and the “destinations” website. Additionally, it provides a link to the Walk [Detroit] website, walkdetroit.moonfruit.com, which provides a comprehensive map of the installations, as well as background and contact information on the project.

The first implementation of signs (20) will be going up in the Villages within a few weeks. A second round of signs in the Villages will be installed as part of the Detroit Design Festival this September. With the hope that the project is successful in this neighborhood, I hope to expand my project to other areas of Detroit, and am currently seeking funding avenues to do so.

Please check out more about the project at walkdetroit.moonfruit.com