America’s Way to Mimick the Walkable City
Does the happiness of living on a college campus stem from its walkability?
By Grace Sprague
College is quite often referred to as the best time of an individual’s life. For the first time ever, young adults can live by themselves, live life on their own schedule, and join the community formed in a college campus. Many students, despite the high costs, begin to dread their graduation day, and fear what lies beyond their cap and gown. What makes college campuses such an ideal place for young adults to thrive, and how can this be mimicked in the real world?
An article written by Muhammed Yasin describes walkable communities as places of mixed land use, compact urban design, public spaces and parks and safe and inviting infrastructure. While communities and cities designed like this were once popular in America, and are still popular throughout most of the West, one place in America consistently combines all of these elements for its residents. The traditional model of the American college campus combines a mixed land use, including residential and academic buildings, with common social spaces and a safe infrastructure. College students who live on campuses experience a truly walkable community, and this could be one of the reasons that recent graduates long for their campus days.
As new college students move onto campuses, they are faced with a way of living that is likely to be different from anything they have ever experienced. Suddenly, their friends, classes, dining hall and recreational spaces are all within walking distance. Living in such proximity to these places is not normal for the average American, as our society normalizes personal cars for any kind of transportation. College campuses follow a “city” model, including residential spaces, “restaurants”, and many types of recreational buildings often present in cities. Most campuses even have their own “police”, or security team that act like campus police.
While cities are designed for cars, college campuses are designed for humans. In his article “College Campuses Are Designed at Human-Scale. Our Cities Can Be Too”, journalist Colin Slowey describes that college campuses are often referred to as the “peak of community” by many alumni. Colleges are meant to create opportunities for face-to-face communication that are not present in modern American cities, which are more focused on commercial exchange. Slowey writes that, “[College campuses] were built to be integrated communities, constructed to be navigable by foot, and most importantly made to serve human beings, with all their diverse social and physiological needs.” By reworking the American model for the typical urban city, these needs would be able to be better met for residents.
The best models of the walkable city, along with its benefits, are revealed in European cities such as Amsterdam, Paris, Venice, and many more cities in various countries across Europe. These cities are not only mainly walkable, with residents being able to step out of their dwellings and immediately being in the city but include a variety of public transportation for longer journeys. People are forced to be together, providing social connection that those in suburban American areas do not receive.
Morgan Henderson and Annika Doeppers, two students who both live on a college campus and spent a semester abroad in the walkable city of Tangier, Morocco, had a bit to say on the matter.
“When I was in Morocco, I noticed that natives all seem to know each other, and it’s the same on my campus. Outside of UNE, I never really interact with other people from Biddeford as that’s just how the city is built,” Henderson stated when asked to compare her experience in Biddeford with her time in Tangier. “It’s much less depressing, you’re forced to go outside and go for a walk,” she explained further.
Doeppers went in depth about her experience with amenities on campus compared to those she found in Tangier. “On campus [amenities] are easier than a walkable city, my student ID can basically get me into anything on campus,” Doeppers explained. Both students gave insight on not only similarities between their campus and the city they called home for a semester, but also highlighted some important differences.
There is a reason that alumni find themselves longing for the college experience long after it has passed, and the walkable campus model may be to thank. The shift toward more walkable cities in America may aid in stretching out this sense of community across the country, all while encouraging movement.
Sources:
Slowey, Collin. “College Campuses Are Designed at Human-Scale. Our Cities Can Be Too.” Strong Towns, Strong Towns, 6 Sept. 2023, www.strongtowns.org/journal/2021/1/6/college-campuses-as-a-model-for-urban-planning.
Yasin, Muhammed. “Crafting Walkable Communities in North America: A Comprehensive Exploration of Global Models.” RSS, 22 Feb. 2024, www.nadigroup.com/insights/crafting-walkable-communities-in-north-america-a-comprehensive-exploration-of-global-models.
