Celebrating National Walking Month as the UK’s most walkable city

We have a lot to celebrate during this year’s National Walking Month after being voted the UK’s most walkable city!

Following our city's inclusion in among the world’s top 50 cities, Brighton & Hove has now been named the most walkable city in the UK and the third most walkable in the world by Time Out.

The results were determined in a survey of more than 18,500 people, who were asked to rate on a scale of 1 (awful) to 5 (amazing) how easy their city is to get around on foot. 88% of local residents who took part rated Brighton & Hove ‘amazing’ or ‘good’.

Building a walking-friendly city

We’re committed to creating environments that make walking easier, safer and more accessible for everyone. Current infrastructure improvements include:

• Safe, active and sustainable travel for the A259 – a new interconnected route forwalking and cycling along the seafront from the Marina to the city’s western boundary.
• A23 Active Travel scheme - changes to the road and pavements alongside London Road and Preston Park to improve access and encourage active and inclusive travel such as walking, wheeling and cycling.
• Valley Gardens Phase 3 overview – a redesigned city centre public space, with a simplified road layout for motorists and an improved and accessible environment for visitors, walkers and cyclists.
• Western Road – improvements to a main city centre road, including new road and pavement surfaces, seating, street lighting and cycle parking.

These projects are helping to make our streets safer, more pleasant and better connected for people who walk, wheel and cycle.

Why walking matters

Walking isn’t just a way to get from A to B – it’s a great way to improve your physical and mental wellbeing, meet new people, and enjoy the incredible green and coastal spaces across the city.

Our Let’s Get Moving Strategy sets out our vision to make the city a place where everyone has the opportunity, encouragement, and environment to move more and live well.

Even small steps can make a big difference. Just a brisk 10-minute walk a day can improve your health and reduce the risk of serious illnesses.

Learn more about the health benefits of walking.

Health Walks and community walking groups

Across the city, there are a variety of free and friendly walking groups, including weekly Health Walks and community-led walks.

You can find a list of community-led walking groups on our website.

Design your own walking group

We’d love to know how you would design a walking group. It could be closer to my home, transport to the walking group’s start point, or a buddy to join the walk with. We’d like to hear what’s important to you.

We’ll analyse this data to understand how we can set up new walking groups to meet local needs and offer different types of walking groups to suit everyone.

Share your thoughts with us on Your Voice, our digital engagement platform.