Assessing the walkability of high-density neighborhoods: Development and reliability of the high-density environment assessment tool (HEAT)

Background: Walking is a widespread and multifaceted activity among residents in high-density cities, making assessing the neighborhood walking environments important. Existing tools for assessing walkability in high-density cities primarily focus on the immediate environment of sidewalks. However, an individual's walking behavior is influenced by environmental characteristics across multiple dimensions and scales. Consequently, based on a systematic analysis of the features of high-density cities, this study proposes the High-density Environment Assessment Tool (HEAT). This hybrid approach comprehensively assesses walkability in high-density cities by incorporating variables of neighborhood, segment (sidewalk), and crossing. Methods: The HEAT consisted of three sections with 108 items. To validate the reliability and applicability, field tests were conducted in two 15-min walkable neighborhoods with different built environment contexts in Chongqing City, China. The neighborhood section was objectively assessed using ArcGIS Software. The segment section and crossing section were audited through systematic on-site observation. Four pairs of trained raters assessed all of the segments (n = 139) and crossings (n = 123) within the two neighborhoods. The inter-rater reliability of the repeated audit data was evaluated by Kappa/Weighted Kappa or Percentage Agreement values. A webbased application was used for data collection and input. Results: For the neighborhood section, 21 assessment items were included. For the segment and crossing sections, 87 assessment items were included for the reliability test, and 84 (96.6%) of the items indicated satisfying inter-rater reliability (with Kappa/Weighted Kappa value >= 0.4 or high Percentage Agreement). In addition, the audit of each segment and crossing sample was completed in an average of 7.9 and 1.8 min, respectively. Conclusions: The results indicated that the HEAT was reliable and efficient. The HEAT provided an effective tool for assessing the walkability of the neighborhood built environment in high-density cities, thereby facilitating environmental interventions aimed at promoting walking activities.