Category: Age-Friendly

Hilltowns Walkability and Healthy Aging Project

Hilltowns Walkability and Healthy Aging Project

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This month, WalkBoston kicked off our five-year Hilltowns Walkability and Healthy Aging project in partnership with the Hilltowns Community Development Corporation and Northampton’s Collaborative for Educational Services. This project is funded through the Massachusetts Department of Public Health’s Healthy Aging Fund and aims to make built environment and policy changes that will make walking safer and more enjoyable in the Hilltowns. The project team has been hosting community conversations via Zoom with Hilltowns stakeholders to learn more about the walking needs and priorities of residents. We are looking forward to heading out to the Hilltowns this summer for a series of workshops and walk audits to move these conversations to action.

Age-Friendly Walking in your community: WalkBoston guidance for taking action

Age-Friendly Walking in your community: WalkBoston guidance for taking action

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Age-Friendly Walking is a framework for planning and building cities and towns that are walkable for people of all ages. Walkability is key to ensuring that older adults can age in community, access goods and services, and maintain physical, mental, and social health.

To guide Age-Friendly Walking efforts for communities across Massachusetts, WalkBoston has developed a list of 8 policy actions and 8 infrastructure improvements that will help make communities more walkable. We hope these guidance documents can assist residents and municipal staff to take actions that will create accessible sidewalks and streets that are safe and welcoming for people of all ages.

If you would like to learn more about how WalkBoston can support Age-Friendly Walking in your community please email us at age-friendly@walkboston.org

These guidance documents can be downloaded here:
8 Age-Friendly Policy Actions
8 Age-Friendly Infrastructure Improvements

Ware Age-Friendly Walk Audit – Report

Ware Age-Friendly Walk Audit – Report

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On Friday, November 15th, WalkBoston conducted a walk audit in Ware, MA. The town of Ware is currently in the process of developing a Bike and Pedestrian plan and a Complete Streets Prioritization plan. The town requested this walk audit to help inform these processes. The audit focused on the walkability of Ware’s low-income, environmental justice neighborhood and of the connectivity of this neighborhood and senior housing complexes to areas of town with a high density of goods and services. This walk audit was completed as part of WalkBoston’s Age-Friendly Walking initiative, which is a three year, statewide initiative to improve walking conditions for people of all ages in rural and gateway communities of Massachusetts through policy implementation and built environment change.

To learn more about this walk audit you can read the report here:
WalkBoston – WARE walk audit report FINAL