{"paper_id":"0eb63133-e229-46e1-8fac-c4dd14bee3cc","body_text":"NYC Walks: A City-wide Foot-traffic Model to Guide Pedestrian-Oriented Planning and Design | Research Square window.SnipcartSettings = { analytics: { enabled: false } }; (function() { var accessVector = localStorage.getItem('access_vector') || ''; window.dataLayer = window.dataLayer || []; if (accessVector) { window.dataLayer.push({ user: { profile: { profileInfo: { snid: accessVector } } } }); } })(); (function(w,d,s,l,i){w[l]=w[l]||[];w[l].push({'gtm.start':new Date().getTime(),event:'gtm.js'});var f=d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0],j=d.createElement(s),dl=l!='dataLayer'?'&l='+l:'';j.async=true;j.src='https://www.googletagmanager.com/gtm.js?id='+i+dl;f.parentNode.insertBefore(j,f);})(window,document,'script','dataLayer','GTM-K279D39R'); Browse Preprints In Review Journals COVID-19 Preprints AJE Video Bytes Research Tools Research Promotion AJE Professional Editing AJE Rubriq About Preprint Platform In Review Editorial Policies Our Team Advisory Board Help Center Sign In Submit a Preprint Cite Share Download PDF Article NYC Walks: A City-wide Foot-traffic Model to Guide Pedestrian-Oriented Planning and Design Andres Sevtsuk, Rounaq Basu, Liu Liu, Abdulaziz Alhassan, Justin Kollar This is a preprint; it has not been peer reviewed by a journal. https://doi.org/ 10.21203/rs.3.rs-7177044/v1 This work is licensed under a CC BY 4.0 License Status: Published Journal Publication published 06 Feb, 2026 Read the published version in Nature Cities → Version 1 posted You are reading this latest preprint version Abstract We present a first city-wide foot traffic model for peak travel periods in New York City. The estimated foot-traffic volumes exhibit over 90% correlations with observed counts and around 25% mean absolute percent errors, extending pedestrian volume estimates to all sidewalk, crosswalk and footpath segments city-wide. We explore the model's use as a baseline for targeted infrastructure investments and hazard analysis using two use cases. First, we examine how estimated pedestrian volumes on different streets can inform sidewalk classification and related public expenditure decisions. Second, we explore how fine-grained pedestrian estimates can be used to understand pedestrian crash hotspots and prioritize them for improvements. The model demonstrates policy and planning relevant outputs that can be applied to a range of different decision-support applications. As cities increasingly prioritize sustainable and active transportation modes, pedestrian land-use-mobility interaction models stand to support a transition to safer, more inclusive, and more vibrant city environments. Social science/Geography Social science/Social policy Pedestrian trips Pedestrian networks Travel demand modeling Land use and transportation New York City Full Text Additional Declarations There is NO Competing Interest. Cite Share Download PDF Status: Published Journal Publication published 06 Feb, 2026 Read the published version in Nature Cities → Version 1 posted You are reading this latest preprint version Research Square lets you share your work early, gain feedback from the community, and start making changes to your manuscript prior to peer review in a journal. As a division of Research Square Company, we’re committed to making research communication faster, fairer, and more useful. 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Also discoverable on Platform About Our Team In Review Editorial Policies Advisory Board Help Center Resources Author Services Accessibility API Access RSS feed Manage Cookie Preferences © Research Square 2026 | ISSN 2693-5015 (online) Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information {\"props\":{\"pageProps\":{\"initialData\":{\"identity\":\"rs-7177044\",\"acceptedTermsAndConditions\":true,\"allowDirectSubmit\":false,\"archivedVersions\":[],\"articleType\":\"Article\",\"associatedPublications\":[],\"authors\":[{\"id\":493608965,\"identity\":\"dde4d4f4-6dc2-49ba-b234-186dd869f2ba\",\"order_by\":0,\"name\":\"Andres 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