Balmain · State Electorate
How much of daily life sits within a walk of home — a transparent 0–10 walkability score and the everyday destinations you can reach on foot: shops, public transport, schools, parks and health services, plus the streets and terrain in between.
A 7.4% average slope makes Balmain a hilly place, yet it remains a walker's paradise with a walkability score of 9.2. Every single home in the area is within a 15-minute walk of a 15-minute-city neighborhood, a result far above the New South Wales figure.
All state electorate areas, 2021. The marker is Balmain — a walker's paradise of areas.
| Balmain | 9.2 |
|---|---|
| Greater Sydney | 7.2 |
| New South Wales | 6.2 |
Share of homes (G-NAF addresses) in Balmain by walking time to the nearest amenity of each type, on an elevation-aware pedestrian network. How we calculate this →
The overall walkability score and how much of daily life is a short walk away.
The area's walkability score of 9.2 is well above the state average of 6.2. Residents have an average of 7.9 different amenity types within a 15-minute walk, which is well above the New South Wales figure of 5.8.
9.2
A walker's paradise of state electorate areas.
A 0–10 score for how much of daily life sits within an easy walk of the average home — weighing how close groceries, public transport, cafés, parks, health services, schools, culture and everyday services are, and how many of each. Walking times are measured on an elevation-aware pedestrian network, so hills count against reach. The methodology page describes how the score is put together.
7.9
Higher than 99% of state electorate areas.
How many of the eight everyday amenity types — groceries, food & drink, health, schools, parks, culture, everyday services and public transport — the average home can reach on foot within 15 minutes, out of 8.
100.0%
Higher than 99% of state electorate areas.
Share of local homes that can reach at least five of the eight everyday amenity types within a 15-minute walk — the "15-minute city" test. Homes are counted as addresses (G-NAF), not people.
How many homes can walk to groceries, transport, schools, parks and health services.
Access to essentials is exceptional, with 100% of homes within a 15-minute walk of public transport and parks. While 98.2% of homes are near health services—far above the state's 57.1%—this is the hardest amenity to reach quickly, as only 48% of homes are within a 5-minute walk of health care.
99.5%
Higher than 99% of state electorate areas.
Share of local homes within a 15-minute walk of groceries or everyday shopping. Homes are counted as addresses (G-NAF), not people.
100.0%
Higher than 99% of state electorate areas.
Share of local homes within a 10-minute walk of a public-transport stop — bus, train, tram or ferry. Homes are counted as addresses (G-NAF), not people.
99.9%
Higher than 99% of state electorate areas.
Share of local homes within a 15-minute walk of a school. Homes are counted as addresses (G-NAF), not people.
100.0%
Higher than 99% of state electorate areas.
Share of local homes within a 15-minute walk of a park or area of open space. Homes are counted as addresses (G-NAF), not people.
98.2%
Higher than 99% of state electorate areas.
Share of local homes within a 15-minute walk of health services such as a GP, pharmacy or hospital. Homes are counted as addresses (G-NAF), not people.
Amenity density, how well the streets connect, and how hilly the walk is.
The streets feature 418 intersections per square kilometre. Despite the high access rates, the number of walkable amenities per 1,000 residents is 10.8, which is well below the New South Wales figure of 14.7.
10.8
Lower than 82% of state electorate areas.
Walkable amenities — shops, cafés, parks, health services, schools, cultural and community places, everyday services and public-transport stops — per 1,000 residents. Measures how much is around, apart from how far it is to walk there.
418
Higher than 96% of state electorate areas.
Walkable street intersections per square kilometre. Denser, better-connected street grids give more direct routes on foot than winding, cul-de-sac layouts.
7.4%
Higher than 80% of state electorate areas.
Average terrain slope across the area, as a percent grade. Steeper ground shortens how far people will walk; it is already folded into the walkability score through the elevation-aware pedestrian network, and is shown here on its own for context.
Australian Bureau of Statistics. (2021). Walkability in Balmain [Census of Population and Housing]. CensusAtlas, used under CC BY 4.0. https://censusatlas.au/region/sed/SED10004/balmain/topic/walkability
