“No one walks in Houston”

July 21, 2008

You hear this a lot – that no one walks in Houston, we drive. I’ve lived in Houston my entire life, and would say that having a dependable car is definitely a requirement. I’d even go so far to say that driving something a little larger in Houston makes you feel a wee bit safer – that you’re not going to get crushed by the other oversized SUVs of Trucks so prevalent here.

According to this Walk Score site, there actually are neighborhoods in Houston that are “walk-friendly”. I work in one of them, the Montrose. Unfortunately, since I need my car to get to-from work, I tend to still use it, even in this neighborhood (there are a few restaurants we do walk to, which are the exception rather than the rule). Also, since it’s 100 degrees outside during the summer, I don’t want to feel sticky all day. So I guess that even though this is a “walkable” neighborhood, I suppose that might only apply if you both live and work in this area.

** update 07/22/08 – Google maps apparently now includes a beta of walking directions, so you can look at your directions by car or walking. Is Google trying to tell me something?