Cairns · Urban Area
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 gentle terrain slope of 5.6% makes Cairns somewhat walkable, with a walkability score of 5.7 that is a little above the Queensland figure. Most residents can easily reach daily essentials on foot, with 66.5% of homes situated within a 15-minute walk of various amenities.
All urban area areas, 2021. The marker is Cairns — somewhat walkable of areas.
| Cairns | 5.7 |
|---|---|
| 4870, QLD | 6.3 |
| Queensland | 5.0 |
Share of homes (G-NAF addresses) in Cairns 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 typical resident in Cairns has access to 5.4 amenity types within a 15-minute walk, which is a little above the state figure of 4.8.
5.7
Somewhat walkable of urban area 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.
5.4
Higher than 74% of urban area 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.
66.5%
Higher than 76% of urban area 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 parks and transport is a major strength, with 96.3% of homes near a park and 85.5% near public transport—both far above Queensland levels. However, health services are harder to reach on foot, with 44.2% of homes within 15 minutes, which is well below the state average.
68.3%
Higher than 81% of urban area areas.
Share of local homes within a 15-minute walk of groceries or everyday shopping. Homes are counted as addresses (G-NAF), not people.
85.5%
Higher than 60% of urban area 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.
64.0%
Higher than 50% of urban area areas.
Share of local homes within a 15-minute walk of a school. Homes are counted as addresses (G-NAF), not people.
96.3%
Higher than 90% of urban area 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.
44.2%
Higher than 62% of urban area 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.
There are 66 street intersections per square kilometre, and the number of walkable amenities per 1,000 residents is 13.0, which is about the same as the Queensland figure.
13.0
Lower than 70% of urban area 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.
66
Higher than 93% of urban area areas.
Walkable street intersections per square kilometre. Denser, better-connected street grids give more direct routes on foot than winding, cul-de-sac layouts.
5.6%
Higher than 59% of urban area 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 Cairns [Census of Population and Housing]. CensusAtlas, used under CC BY 4.0. https://censusatlas.au/region/sua/3004/cairns/topic/walkability
