Do you like taking a walk in your neighborhood? Would you like to be able to walk to a coffee shop or grocery store, or to public transportation?
If so, you want to live in a walkable neighborhood — one where most of your trips can be made on foot, with a bike, or on a scooter or skateboard.
At WalkScore.com, you can look up an address or neighborhood to see how walkable it is. San Diego has some very walkable neighborhoods. Downtown, Little Italy and Sherman Heights score very well on walkability, according to Redfin.
So do North Park and Hillcrest, and other neighborhoods that have lots of dense, mixed-use development where homes, shops and businesses are all together.
And it’s in these neighborhoods in the urban core of San Diego where a majority of new housing is being built.
Housing permit data
Two thirds of housing permits issued in San Diego County between 2018 and 2024 are in places with above average walkability, according to the Environmental Protection Agency's National Walkability Index.
If you take a walk through North Park or Hillcrest, you’ll see all the new developments that are going up.
“I moved here like maybe four or five months ago,” said North Park resident Aman Dhillon. “And honestly, it's very walkable and at the same time it's super dog friendly. So I walk with my dog around the neighborhood all the time and everybody is super friendly.”
But 37% of recent permits are for homes that do not score high on the EPA’s walkability index, including East Chula Vista and Otay Ranch.
Residents of these areas are far more likely to need to drive to get around. In California, the average annual cost of owning a car is more than $14,000 when factoring in payments, insurance, maintenance and other car owner expenses.
And when people are forced to drive, it doesn’t just hurt their wallet. It impacts the environment. In San Diego County, the largest source of pollution is still cars and trucks on the road, according to the San Diego Association of Governments And nobody likes sitting in traffic.
Bumps in the road to walkability
Americans across the country pay more to live in a walkable neighborhood, according to Smart Growth America. A big part of that extra cost is due to a lack of supply, and the biggest constraint on supply is local zoning.
Their report says that just 1.2% of the land in the United States' top 35 metropolitan areas is considered walkable. Everywhere else, the type of dense, mixed-use development necessary for walkability is illegal due to city zoning laws.
San Diego has changed zoning in some neighborhoods despite backlash from homeowners.
That includes the University Community plan update, which will bring thousands of new homes to the area around UTC and the Blue Line trolley stations.
But other neighborhoods haven’t had the same updates.
The next steps
San Diego leaders have been working to increase housing supply in the walkable neighborhoods that do exist.
“I have really been pushing to add housing downtown for a number of reasons,” said Councilmember Stephen Whitburn, who represents the city’s urban core. “It’s where our transit hub is, so it’s good for the environment. Lots of jobs downtown, so it’s good for the economy.”
He said there are more restaurants and small businesses in his district than anywhere else in San Diego, and adding density to the area will support those businesses.
“There’s just a lot of activity here,” Whitburn said. “And people like to be a part of it.”
Whitburn also said that building more in the urban core is helping keep prices down, making those neighborhoods more affordable.
In San Diego, rents rose slower in places that permitted more homes over the past several years.
Smooth walking
Walkable neighborhoods produce better health outcomes and foster a stronger sense of community, according to UCSD research.
But walkability requires more than just housing.
Safe streets, good sidewalks, bike lanes and pleasant public spaces are all important aspects of making a city more walkable.
“The number one thing is if the walk is safe, convenient and dignified are the three different ways that we look at,” said Haylee Rea, strategy and mobilization lead for Strong Towns San Diego, a local advocacy group.
“So can you get to the grocery store physically and are you in any danger? That would be the lowest bar,” Rea said. “And then other things come in. Is it a fun walk? Nobody wants to walk if it's not fun. So that's where things like plants or street art or lighting come into play.”
That’s one reason the city is lowering speed limits on several corridors with a lot of foot traffic.
Sidewalks are another crucial piece of walkability. Residents of neighborhoods with missing, cracked, or inconsistent sidewalks have a much harder time getting around on foot or with other mobility devices.
San Diego’s pedestrian master plan says the city aims to, “...create a safe, accessible, connected and walkable pedestrian environment…” that encourages walking to get around, and the city has made progress over the past few years.
In 2023, the San Diego City Council voted to speed up sidewalk repairs. And this year, the city released its new street design manual that guides the process of designing streets — and the associated walkability features.
City leaders say they want to improve walkability and mobility, but obstacles remain to actually implementing that vision. Still, every step in the right direction brings the city closer to that reality.
