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North Saanich and Metchosin are the worst places for pedestrians according to Walk Score

Victoria neighbourhoods rate well while West Shore and Saanich Peninsula communities rely on cars
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Saanich has a middling score when it comes to walkability, with a rating of 51 out 100. Victoria tops the region with 78 out of 100, while Metchosin and North Saanich share last place with 15 out of 100. (Black Press file photo)

Are you looking to walk off some of that extra helping of turkey you had over Thanksgiving?

You are in luck if you live in the City of Victoria, which has a walk-ability rating of 78 out of 100, according to Walk Score, a website that promotes walkable neighbourhoods.

RELATED: Greater Victoria a national leader in sustainable transportation

This rating earns Victoria the status of “very walkable” as “most errands can be accomplished on foot.” Of the 14 Victoria neighbourhoods that the site rates, Harris Green (98), Downtown (97) and North Park (91) finish in the Top 13. Rockland (71), Oaklands (70), and Gonzales (66) make up the Bottom 3.

Oak Bay finishes between Saanich and Victoria with a walk-ability rating of 61.

Saanich, the region’s largest municipality, finishes with a ranking of “somewhat walkable” by scoring 51 out of 100 points. While the website does not break down Saanich by neighbourhoods, Saanich likely features consider variability, with neighbourhoods bordering Victoria and Oak Bay likely more walkable than neighbourhoods towards the northern or western end of the municipality.

West Shore communities meanwhile struggle when it comes to walk-ability. Langford with a rating of 48 out of 100 is a “car-dependent city,” as are View Royal (47), and Colwood (42), where “most errands require a car.”

Sooke (23) and Metchosin (15) are communities, where “almost all errands require a car.”

But if these figures confirm the cliche that the West Shore communities are car-reliant communities, the Saanich Peninsula should not feel too smug. North Saanich ties Metchosin for the least walkable community in the Greater Victoria region, while Central Saanich (35) and Sidney (32) are not exactly friendly places for pedestrians.


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wolfgang.depner@saanichnews.com



Wolf Depner

About the Author: Wolf Depner

I joined the national team with Black Press Media in 2023 from the Peninsula News Review, where I had reported on Vancouver Island's Saanich Peninsula since 2019.
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