Traveling from one place to another, if it is not particularly far, makes most sense on foot. Walking can be fun; it requires no parking space; it’s exercise; it allows for a full appreciation of the surrounding scenes; it costs nothing. Beyond all that, it just makes sense.

Those who can walk easily are horrified by the idea of losing that ability — of being restricted to a cane, crutches, or a wheelchair. (And for good reason—in too many cities, it is only the fully ‘able’ who are able to move around on foot!) And yet, in city after city, policymakers and planners ignore pedestrians or, when they remember them, completely undervalue our existence.

We are subjected to absurd ways to cross the street; we are prevented from taking the most convenient route; we are not provided with basic amenities like shade, benches, smooth connecting sidewalks, and safe street crossings that don’t involve climbing stairs.

But it’s not enough to know that the conditions for walking are lousy; it helps to have a thorough understanding of the precise problems so as to make the case for specific changes. And that is precisely what we did in Dhaka; that study is now written up in Journeys, published by the Singapore Land Transport Authority.