enhancing pedestrian trips in urban areas: a macro-level approach (case study: shiraz city)

The focus on sustainable transportation and pedestrian-friendly urban environments has gained importance, emphasizing the need to prioritize pedestrians over cars in transportation planning. pedestrian trip modeling poses several challenges, including predicting the number of pedestrian trips generated in specific areas, identifying the variables influencing walk-trip generation, and measuring their impact. most researchers have developed trip generation models based on trip purposes rather than travel modes. furthermore, some studies have used variables similar to those used for other travel modes to model walking trips. this study aimed to identify influential variables and measure their impact. developing trip production models exclusively for walk trips, along with the corresponding variables, and addressing the challenge of zero-walk trips in many zones are regarded as innovations. shiraz city was utilized as a case study, encompassing 325 pedestrian analysis zones, to model walk-trip production using linear regression. walk trips, categorized into home-based and non-home-based trips, were estimated for the base year. the herfindahl-hirschman index, access to land use, and car ownership at the neighborhood level significantly influence walk-trip production. an increase in car ownership reduces home-based walking trips and increases non-home-based ones. additionally, a 1% rise in access to green spaces resulted in a 4% increase in home-based walking trips. these models can predict future walking trips and assess the impact of urban design plans on pedestrian activity. prioritizing pedestrian-friendly transportation planning leads to more sustainable and people-centric urban areas.