The moment your feet hit the ground, you notice the difference between these two cities.
If you take a walk here in Charleston, it will feel slow and close to the street. There are plenty of old buildings to look at and even more uneven sidewalks. Cars pass, but they don’t rush.
Chicago flips all this around. The blocks stretch out forever, the streets are wider, and the pace? Man, the pace is insane. Traffic never stops, and everyone has somewhere to be and something to do. Every intersection is like a small negotiation.
Both of these cities are walkable, or so they claim. But each has different reasons for this claim, and this is where things get interesting.
Charleston’s Layout and Its Effect on Daily Movement
The streets are narrower in Charleston. This means that cars have to drive more slowly whether they want to or not – and while that may not be as great for drivers, it is great for pedestrians.
This makes crossing the street in Charleston a lot less stressful. You don’t need to sprint across wide intersections or wait forever for the light to turn green.
The sidewalks are interesting, as well (especially in the city core). A lot of them are old and uneven, which is why they’re so special. But while they do look interesting, they also become dangerous when wet. And Charleston gets plenty of rain for slipping accidents to happen.
Regardless, they give the city a distinct type of charm, but you’ll need to pay more attention to where you step, or you’ll end up with your nose in concrete. If you add to this the steady flow of tourists, you get a walking experience that’s lively. But it does get a bit congested sometimes.
Everyone shares the same areas, whether that’s tourists, cyclists, horse carriages, or joggers.
This means that everybody has to adjust their pace, which can be a lesson for all bigger cities. Chicago could take a few cues from Charleston and the way it uses its slower street sections to make walking calmer.
Both cities have their share of moments where pedestrians, cyclists, cars, and buses cross paths in ways that are… Shall we say, less than ideal?
If the worst happens, a bus crash injury attorney or a car crash attorney can help you out, but this is still something to keep in mind.
Safety first!
How Chicago’s Scale Affects Walkability
Chicago has long blocks and wide streets that make it feel structured, which is great.
But this also creates more distance between crossings and more exposure to traffic. Most areas get a lot of traffic, which is far more than just a background detail here. It’s constant.
During busy hours, you’ll find yourself surrounded by cars, buses, cyclists, delivery vans, and ride-shares, all moving fast and wanting their space.
This makes walking into a series of small decisions, like when to cross the street and how fast you can move. The weather is also a big factor here. Chicago gets plenty of ice and snow, and strong winds make the streets feel even more open.
With all this being said, Chicago doesn’t leave its walkers to fend for themselves.
The Windy City spends real effort on better signals, protected intersections, curb extensions, upgrades to the lighting, and dedicated bike lanes. This all shows how a large city can be adjusted to heavy daily movement. Maybe Charleston can take a page out of Chicago’s book?
Chicago’s system is an excellent blueprint on how to stay safe as the city grows, and with the amount of visitors Charleston has been getting, it might be time to rethink some things.
Chicago vs Charleston – Walkability Numbers
Here are some useful data points/numbers to compare the two cities:
Chicago
- 6.4% Chicago residents walk to work and back. – U.S. Census Bureau
- The city of Chicago earns a ‘Walk Score’ of 77/100, ranking 4th in the U.S. – Walk Score
- Two studies (in 2015 and in 2016) show that 68% and 81% of vehicles, respectively, didn’t obey street signs, endangering pedestrians. – ResearchGate
- Sidewalk connectivity remains a major issue in a great number of Chicago areas. – Chicago Metropolitan Agency for Planning
Charleston
- 5.3% Charleston workers commute to work and back on foot. – U.S. Census Bureau
- 7+ million visitors walk through Charleston’s historic district each year (one of the densest pedestrian zones in the Southeast). – Collage of Charleston
- 40+% of sidewalks in the Charleston historic core area were built pre-1950; they show moderate-severe unevenness. – City of Charleston Public Works
- Charleston gets approx. 49 inches of rain each year; a slip risk on older/slick stone sidewalks. – National Centers for Environmental Information (NCEI)
Chicago offers a ‘stronger’ walkability structure compared to the city of Charleston, but Charleston offers a slower and arguably safer walking experience.
Both cities approach the issue of walkability in their own ways, but they do point to one thing: walkability ultimately depends on street design and city scale.
Even if the walkability of a city is superb, if it suddenly became bigger, that ‘superb’ score would quickly fall.
Challenges Both Cities Face
When the streets get busy, it gets messy in both places.
During big events and festivals, the flow of people changes, and the sidewalks get tighter and a lot more unpredictable. You move more slowly and you change directions more often. But the biggest problem is that you stop paying close attention to what’s around you.
And it’s not just the size of the crowds that’s the issue.
Each city has its own physical obstacles that have an impact on the way you move. In Charleston, the charm of older surfaces comes with uneven spots that can throw off your balance, especially when you find yourself in historic areas that tend to be packed. In Chicago, the problem shows up after winter, when ice and snow leave cracks and dips that affect anyone who’s walking.
Chicago and Charleston are regularly maintained, so the sidewalks get repaired, the lighting gets improved, the curb ramps get upgrades, everything is cleaned up after storms, etc.
This keeps things functioning, and while most people don’t notice the importance of details like these, they sure feel something’s different if anything is missing.
Conclusion
Isn’t it funny how each city has something the other needs?
Charleston shows you how much calmer a street feels when cars can’t speed through it, but Chicago proves how structure and good planning can save you from walking through total chaos.
If you put these two approaches together, you get a recipe for a city that’s easy to move through regardless of the crowds.