Cultural actions are the behaviors and customs that are shared and passed down within societies. They reflect a sense of belonging among the individuals who share a certain activity, functioning to connect the individual to the place. In San Miguel de Allende, Mexico, walking is a cultural action.
Walkability is a popular term used to describe how “friendly” a place is for walking. It is based on the built environment characteristics of a place, like sidewalks. Cities are walkable if you can get to where you need to go on foot. Walkability is important because an established body of research has documented the benefits of walking for physical and mental health and sustainability. Walking is also very practical. Despite these positive effects of walking, however, many cities have witnessed drastic reductions in walking as a transportation mode over the last decades as levels of car ownership have increased. While access to a private car has had a negative effect on walking for transportation, there are other factors associated with a propensity to walk: culture and walkability.
Theory suggests that the more walkable a place is, the more people will walk instead of drive or ride in a vehicle. However, one would hardly describe San Miguel de Allende as having a walkable built environment. In the U.S., sidewalk widths are at least four feet from street curb to sidewalk edge. In San Miguel, the majority of sidewalks are nothing like that. Sidewalks, where they exist, are highly uneven and narrow. It’s rare that two people can walk comfortably side by side. Streets are steep and remain cobblestone covered. Motorized vehicles compete for space with pedestrians on cramped roadways. Yet despite how unwalkable San Miguel is, walking is a prevalent mode of transportation. According to the ICLEI – Local Governments for Sustainability – Network, the modal split in San Miguel as of 2015, was 41% bus, 34% walking, 24% auto, and 1% cycling.
How do we explain this seeming contradiction with the research on walking and walkability? Well, much of this research has been based on empirical data from European or American geographical contexts. The idea that a culture of walking can be transmitted from generation to generation, not unlike art, dance, music, food, and literature, is outside of this worldview.
Fitting with the notion that walking is a cultural action, a study in Tucson, Arizona, found that attributes of the social environment (i.e., social interaction, social cohesion, and community identity) were more frequently expressed by Mexican Americans as components of walkability, while physical environment attributes (i.e., infrastructure, street crossings, and aesthetics) were more frequently mentioned by non-Hispanics. In this example, culture plays an important role in framing perceptions of walkability.
In many cities, low socioeconomic conditions are associated with a reliance on walking as a means of transportation. However, in San Miguel, walking is as common among high-income tourists as with locals. Also in many places, walking can be dangerous. San Miguel traffic flows prioritize pedestrians who have the right-of-way, making it safe to walk.
Walking as a means of travel, when done voluntarily as in San Miguel, becomes a cultural action that can have a beneficial effect both for the people who do it and for the space itself that is walked on. This is human-centered urban development exemplified: not just pretty but practical.
Maison Mexique curates walking tours to meet your special needs and interests.
Johanna Zmud is a transportation/mobility expert, who also happens to be an avid walker and non-car owning resident of San Miguel de Allende. Her non-car owning habits span more than a decade. She is also an owner of Maison Mexique Boutique Hotel.
