Walking the walk: Our annual 'report card'

Sometimes, all people need to get walking is a little nudge...

This was just one of the exciting (and encouraging) discoveries we made at Victoria Walks over the past year, with the success of the Change to Walking program delivered across five local government areas. For a full summary of our achievements, check out our annual Report Card.

Victoria Walks' highlights 2016-2017: 

• Two-thirds of participants in the Change to Walking program in Bendigo, Darebin, Geelong, Warrnambool and the Yarra Ranges reported they would walk more in the future after the program, which used simple prompts and incentives to change entrenched behaviours such as driving children all the way to the school gate, or driving to work every day. This program was delivered in partnership with VicHealth.
  
  
• We put specific safety concerns on the map with WalkSpot, a ground-breaking interactive online experience built by CrowdSpot that allowed Melburnians to pinpoint locations where they do and do not feel safe as pedestrians. The data collected will help the State Government and local councils to better understand barriers to walkability.
  
  
• Delivered Let's Walk Braybrook to improve local participation in walking in the culturally diverse western suburbs of Melbourne. The program encouraged more people, particularly women, to make use of walking paths to access community infrastructure such as parks, schools and shopping precincts.
  
  
• Released the Planning for Pedestrian Accessibility at Level Crossing Removals and Railway Stations report to improve understanding about the impacts and opportunities for pedestrians in and around train stations with the State Government's major Level Crossing Removal project.
  
  
• Attracted more the 160 delegates from Australia and overseas to our fourth Smart Urban Futures conference, held in partnership with the Municipal Association of Victoria in March 2017. The event was a platform for some visionary thinking about pedestrian-friendly infrastructure as expressed by the likes of Brent Toderian, one of the world's most in-demand city planners.
  
  
• Released the Safer Road Design for Older Pedestrians report with the help of a TAC Community Road Safety Grant. The report found that people aged 65 and over represent 14.6% of the population yet account for 39% of pedestrian fatalities.
  
  
• Developed the Victoria Walks Strategic Plan 2017-2020 to increase our presence and influence as a leader in walkability.
  
  

Our 2017 report card was presented at Victoria Walks' supporter event on Tuesday September 12th 2017. David Silvester, Transport For Victoria, Deputy Secretary, Network Planning addressed attendees and spoke about the transport challenges facing Victoria as its population continues to grow.