Table 2.
Measures of walkability: tools, indices and questionnaires and stair assessment
| Name/Type of walkability tool, index, or questionnaire (N = 15) | Assesses Geographic Terrain | Assesses Stairs | Number of Articles Using This Measure (%) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Audit of Physical Activity Resources for Seniors (APARS) | Yes | Yes | 1 (0.5%) |
| Geographic Information Systems (GIS) | Yes1 | No | 110 (53.7%) |
| International Physical Activity Questionnaire Environmental Module (IPAQ-E) | No | No | 5 (2.4%) |
| Neighborhood Brief Observation Tool | No | No | 1 (0.5%) |
| Neighborhood Environment Walkability Scale (NEWS; all versions) | Yes | No | 51 (24.9%) |
| Neighborhood Open Space (NOS) | No | No | 3 (1.5%) |
| Neighborhood Resident Survey | No | No | 1 (0.5%) |
| Neighborhood Walking Questionnaire for Chinese Seniors (NWQ-CS) | Yes | No | 4 (2.0%) |
| New Urbanism Index | No | No | 1 (0.5%) |
| Older Peoples Active Living (OPAL) questionnaire | Unknown | Unknown | 3 (1.5%) |
| Self-created items or indices on walkability | Yesa | Yesa | 45 (22.0%) |
| (Street Smart) Walk Score | No | No | 5 (2.4%) |
| Systematic Pedestrian and Cycling Environment Scan (SPACES) | Yes | No | 1 (0.5%) |
| University of Miami Built Environment Coding System (UMBECS) | No | No | 1 (0.5%) |
| Zhongshan Household Travel Survey (ZHTS) | Unknown | Unknown | 1 (0.5%) |
| Total | 6 | 1b | 205 (100%)c |
aRefers to a broader set of walkability measures and thus some collect information on geographic terrain while others do not
bAPARS is the only walkability tool that that includes questions on stairs. However, in four other articles there were questions about stairs as survey items in their studies about walkability
cSince some studies used more than one type of walkability measure, the numbers and percentages add up to more than 205 and 100% respectively