Urban densities for walkability in Madrid
Urban densities for walkability
Urban densities for walkability refer to the spatial conditions and urban functions that enable daily walking.
Madrid has, in a large part of the city, the right characteristics to facilitate walking. High values are present in all neighborhoods of the city, although unevenly. The areas with the highest urban densities for walkability are Tetuán, Chamberí, Centro, Salamanca, Retiro, La Latina and Los Ángeles. The lowest values are found in the periphery, along major road and rail axes and in the city’s parks.
What do urban densities depend on for walkability?
Urban densities for walkability integrate residential and commercial density, walkable intersections and the diversity of uses of the built environment.
Residential density
Madrid’s residential density is heterogeneous and presents a polycentric spatial distribution. Residential uses predominate in 9% of the city, in the central and southwestern neighborhoods of the city. The areas with the lowest residential density are in the peripheries.
Commercial density
Commercial infrastructure in Madrid is present in all neighborhoods, though very unevenly distributed. Commercial density is very high in 4.6% of the city. The neighborhoods of Centro, Chamberí, Tetuán, Salamanca, Arganzuela, Usera, and Ciudad Lineal have high commercial density. The rest of the neighborhoods combine low commercial densities with high-density nodes. Commercial density is low in the peripheries.
Intersections
The number and distribution of walkable road intersections (sidewalks, pedestrian zones, parks and pedestrian crossings) in the city of Madrid is heterogeneous and does not respond to center-periphery patterns. In 18% of the urban area the number of intersections is high. High values predominate in the neighborhoods of Centro, Valdeacederas- Berruguete- Bellas Vistas, Hortaleza and Los Ángeles- Los Rosales, and are scattered throughout the rest of the city.
Diversity of uses
Land uses in Madrid are heterogeneous and follow a polycentric spatial distribution. In central neighborhoods, residential, commercial, institutional, office, and leisure uses are interwoven. Approximately 27% of the city has high diversity values. In the periphery, mixed land uses are concentrated in nodes.
Location map
