# What's an easily walkable distance to a business to you? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [December 23, 2020, 2:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-an-easily-walkable-distance-to-a-business-to-you/928740 "2020-12-23T14:44:53Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![The\_wind\_of\_my\_soul](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ecc23a/32.png) [@The\_wind\_of\_my\_soul](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_wind_of_my_soul)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2020, 5:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-an-easily-walkable-distance-to-a-business-to-you/928740/21 "2020-12-23T17:08:59Z")
I’m going to say either (a) Nothing is easily walkable, or (b) Four miles. My reasoning: I’m a little further removed from businesses than I was in my old home, but still in as good physical shape as I was in my previous home. My previous home was four miles from my office, and when the weather was nice, I would sometimes run to work. My home was also across the street from a shopping center (i.e., on the other side of a major road with a stoplight and a walk/don’t walk signal), and while I would sometimes walk to the shopping center, it was often easier to drive – it took less time and was more comfortable. In my case, I think running (or walking) for exercise just belongs in a different category from walking to get something done. If I want to get something done, I want to get it done in the quickest and most convenient way possible. On the other hand, I’ll go out on a mountain trail for several hours, because in that case, the whole point is to be hiking on the mountain. ---
**Author:** ![blondebear](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/blondebear/32/1022_2.png) [@blondebear](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/blondebear)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2020, 5:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-an-easily-walkable-distance-to-a-business-to-you/928740/22 "2020-12-23T17:09:58Z")
Two miles one-way is no problem in decent weather. My two main grocery stores are about a 3-mile round trip that I do three days a week at least. ---
**Author:** ![DCnDC](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dcndc/32/2842_2.png) [@DCnDC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DCnDC)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2020, 5:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-an-easily-walkable-distance-to-a-business-to-you/928740/23 "2020-12-23T17:13:11Z")
It kind of depends on the terrain and environment for me. My house is roughly 1/3 - 1/2 of a mile away from stuff, but my neighborhood is also very hilly and very suburban, i.e. the walk is difficult and boring. But if I lived in a flat, urban area, I’d happily walk that far and probably double that. ---
**Author:** ![doreen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/858c86/32.png) [@doreen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/doreen)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2020, 5:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-an-easily-walkable-distance-to-a-business-to-you/928740/24 "2020-12-23T17:19:09Z")
How easily walkable something is depends on whether I have a destination, how much I want to get there and what the walk will be like. I don’t even want to walk a half-mile to a grocery store if I’m buying more than a couple of items because of hassles of carrying my purchases home. But in my urban area, I’ve walked more than a mile home after dropping my car off at a mechanic - which I probably wouldn’t have done if it meant walking on mostly residential streets ---
**Author:** ![PastTense](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pasttense/32/14550_2.png) [@PastTense](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PastTense)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2020, 5:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-an-easily-walkable-distance-to-a-business-to-you/928740/25 "2020-12-23T17:26:51Z")
Post office is a block away (I go about every day as mail delivery is there). Bank and hardware store are two blocks away. On the other hand if I want to get a loaf of bread or gallon of milk the closest is 9 miles away. ---
**Author:** ![Machine\_Elf](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/82dd89/32.png) [@Machine\_Elf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Machine_Elf)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2020, 6:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-an-easily-walkable-distance-to-a-business-to-you/928740/26 "2020-12-23T18:31:23Z")
When the weather was good, my wife and I were doing recreational walks of 2-4 miles, but if I’m going to be carrying something in my hands, my limit will be a lot less, with the acceptable distance depending on what I’m carrying; if I’ve got double-bagged (i.e. heavy) groceries in each hand, I’m not going to want to do much more than a 1/4-mile. The nearest stores are 1.5 miles from me, and the routes there are not terribly pleasant to walk, so I’ve only done so a few times in the ~15 years I’ve lived in this location. ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2020, 6:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-an-easily-walkable-distance-to-a-business-to-you/928740/27 "2020-12-23T18:32:19Z")
> [@Red\_Wiggler](#): > > I am three miles away from a pork and beans outlet store. That’s not a typo. OK, what’s a “pork and beans outlet store”? ---
**Author:** ![Northern\_Piper](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/northern_piper/32/5304_2.png) [@Northern\_Piper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Northern_Piper)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2020, 6:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-an-easily-walkable-distance-to-a-business-to-you/928740/28 "2020-12-23T18:43:10Z")
I walk to work. Google Maps says that’s 1.6 km and 21 minutes, so that’s a walkable distance for me. ---
**Author:** ![DigitalC](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ebca7d/32.png) [@DigitalC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DigitalC)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2020, 7:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-an-easily-walkable-distance-to-a-business-to-you/928740/29 "2020-12-23T19:46:47Z")
Being from Florida I don’t consider anything walkable distance. ---
**Author:** ![Red\_Wiggler](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/red_wiggler/32/13190_2.png) [@Red\_Wiggler](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Red_Wiggler)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2020, 8:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-an-easily-walkable-distance-to-a-business-to-you/928740/30 "2020-12-23T20:00:21Z")
> [@Dewey\_Finn](#): > > > [@Red\_Wiggler](#): > > > > I am three miles away from a pork and beans outlet store. That’s not a typo. > > OK, what’s a “pork and beans outlet store”? [It’s pretty much what it says.](https://www.porkandbeansstore.com/) ---
**Author:** ![Ludovic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/7ab992/32.png) [@Ludovic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ludovic)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2020, 8:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-an-easily-walkable-distance-to-a-business-to-you/928740/31 "2020-12-23T20:09:05Z")
> [@Gray\_Ghost](#): > > OTOH, I have walked from one end of the giant mall where I was parked, to another, versus getting back to the car and driving (and trying to conjure up parking) to the other end. Yeah, I have to factor the finding-parking hassle into the equation in a large strip mall, as well as the heat and rain. > [@DigitalC](#): > > Being from Florida I don’t consider anything walkable distance. I know, right? Due to the humidity, it’s almost always either too hot or too cold. 40 degrees is cold in florida and not only because people aren’t used to it: the water in the air will strip out the heat from your body if there is any wind at all even better than dry northern 30 degree weather. I definitely factor this into my walkability quotient. ---
**Author:** ![Saintly\_Loser](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/saintly_loser/32/4045_2.png) [@Saintly\_Loser](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Saintly_Loser)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2020, 8:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-an-easily-walkable-distance-to-a-business-to-you/928740/32 "2020-12-23T20:14:37Z")
Google Maps tells me the walk from my apartment building in Brooklyn to the nearest subway station is half a mile. So that’s my minimum walk, meaning I have to walk at least that far to get anywhere at all. The walk to my wife’s office from our home is .6 of a mile. Both walks seem really easy to me. It’s one mile to the nearest Target, where I go sometimes. Again, seems like an easily walkable distance to me, even in poor weather. Funny, my wife thinks these are all long walks. I grew up in the city, and she grew up in a rural area, so you’d think it was the other way around, but it’s not. My guess is that, where she grew up, either a destination was right next door, or it was so far away that you had to drive. So she thinks walking any distance at all is a big deal. ---
**Author:** ![Robot\_Arm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/robot_arm/32/18280_2.png) [@Robot\_Arm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Robot_Arm)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2020, 8:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-an-easily-walkable-distance-to-a-business-to-you/928740/33 "2020-12-23T20:36:22Z")
Not exactly. When someone says “pork and beans”, I don’t immediately think of coffee. ---
**Author:** ![Filbert](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/filbert/32/3433_2.png) [@Filbert](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Filbert)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2020, 8:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-an-easily-walkable-distance-to-a-business-to-you/928740/34 "2020-12-23T20:56:52Z")
If the weather’s good, I’m not picking up anything heavy and it’s a reasonably flat route, maybe 2 miles or so. I used to walk that distance into town all the time, which used to take me 25-30 minutes- I walk fast. I’ll regularly park a mile away from where I’m going to avoid paying for parking- I’m fast _and_ cheap. I rarely walk much distance to shops where I currently live though, the post office, doctor and pharmacy are all only about half a mile, the fruit 'n veg place is just a few hundred metres (yeah, yeah, I’m English, we refuse to pick one measurement system and stick to it). If I’m going further, I’m usually getting a load of stuff including frozen food, so I’ll drive. ---
**Author:** ![Dadtheinhaler](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e480ec/32.png) [@Dadtheinhaler](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dadtheinhaler)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2020, 9:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-an-easily-walkable-distance-to-a-business-to-you/928740/35 "2020-12-23T21:26:44Z")
> [@Dewey\_Finn](#): > > OK, what’s a “pork and beans outlet store”? The gas station hyuk hyuk I live in Manhattan so especially with the pandemic I walk everywhere. I can’t remember the last time I was on the subway. If something needs to be hauled I take my falling apart little cart. There’s no place I need to go that can’t be walked to although when buses were free I’d hop on one from time to time. A music store even opened up in my neighborhood so I don’t have to travel to get picks and strings. For recreation I’ll walk anywhere from 2.5 to 5.5 miles (all flat though) at least half the distance in Central Park. I know when I’ve walked 5 miles because my feet start hurting quite suddenly. It’s a bit harder for me to get out the door now that it’s dark when I get off work, so that’s something I need to work on. ---
**Author:** ![Hari\_Seldon](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hari_seldon/32/5173_2.png) [@Hari\_Seldon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hari_Seldon)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2020, 9:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-an-easily-walkable-distance-to-a-business-to-you/928740/36 "2020-12-23T21:51:14Z")
Until about 2 years ago, I regularly walked 4 miles to my office, but that was getting harder and harder. Still anything up to a mile is still fine. Come April, I will be taking my car to the garage two miles away to have the snow tires removed and try to walk back, rather than take a bus. Unless I’ve been vaccinated. My son was visiting in October and he took the car in for the purpose and ran back. ---
**Author:** ![Fretful\_Porpentine](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fretful_porpentine/32/2873_2.png) [@Fretful\_Porpentine](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fretful_Porpentine)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2020, 10:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-an-easily-walkable-distance-to-a-business-to-you/928740/37 "2020-12-23T22:20:23Z")
The most distant place of business that I walk to regularly is the farmer’s market, which Google Maps thinks is about a mile from my apartment (although in practice, I think it’s closer since Google Maps doesn’t know you can cut across parking lots and such). ---
**Author:** ![carrps](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carrps/32/2957_2.png) [@carrps](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carrps)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2020, 11:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-an-easily-walkable-distance-to-a-business-to-you/928740/38 "2020-12-23T23:15:14Z")
> [@Dinoguy](#): > > Back before our big Blue Heeler passed we’d go 30 minutes easy, as he would pull me up hills (especially if he saw a cat). It’s always easier when I have my dog pulling me… and I only have a dachshund. Thirteen pounds of pure muscle, though. I’ve never worked close to home since I was in high school – between 25 and 40 miles my entire adult working life. But I’d say a mile is the most I’d do for a regular commute walk. ---
**Author:** ![Red\_Wiggler](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/red_wiggler/32/13190_2.png) [@Red\_Wiggler](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Red_Wiggler)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2020, 11:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-an-easily-walkable-distance-to-a-business-to-you/928740/39 "2020-12-23T23:59:04Z")
> [@Robot\_Arm](#): > > Not exactly. When someone says “pork and beans”, I don’t immediately think of coffee. What? Who doesn’t like a nice cup of Colombian Dark Roast with their morning hog jowls? ---
**Author:** ![Dr\_Paprika](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dr_paprika/32/3042_2.png) [@Dr\_Paprika](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr_Paprika)\ **Post date:** [December 24, 2020, 12:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-an-easily-walkable-distance-to-a-business-to-you/928740/40 "2020-12-24T00:44:23Z")
It really depends on the type of store. If it’s a big grocery store, I don’t necessarily want to lug cases of pop or many bags any significant distance. But if it’s a few things - bakery bread, fresh fish or takeout - it also depends on the weather. Canada is not always free of snow and ice. I can walk for miles and my dog gets 1-3 walks every day. The distance is not that relevant, but a mile may or may not be too far. I’d consider parking ease and cost, dog friendliness, distance, weather, intended purchases and my daily schedule. I get my main exercise elsewhere, but value scenic walks. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-an-easily-walkable-distance-to-a-business-to-you/928740.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-an-easily-walkable-distance-to-a-business-to-you/928740.md?page=3)