Blue Mountains · Urban Centre
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.
Far fewer homes have easy access to a 15-minute-city walkshed in Blue Mountains compared to the state average. While the area is considered somewhat walkable, the most striking gap is in the distance to essential services like schools and groceries. However, almost every home is within a short stroll of a park.
All urban centre areas, 2021. The marker is Blue Mountains — somewhat walkable of areas.
| Blue Mountains | 5.7 |
|---|---|
| 2783, NSW | 6.3 |
| New South Wales | 6.2 |
Share of homes (G-NAF addresses) in Blue Mountains 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 walkability score is 5.7, making it somewhat walkable, which is about the same as the New South Wales figure. About 61.9% of homes have a 15-minute-city walkshed, a result well below the state average of 71.9%.
5.7
Somewhat walkable of urban centre 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.
5.5
Higher than 65% of urban centre 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.
61.9%
Higher than 52% of urban centre 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.
Parks are the most accessible amenity, with 94.9% of homes within a 15-minute walk, well above the state. In contrast, access to schools (61.0%) and groceries (53.7%) is far below the state average, with 13% of homes being more than 30 minutes from the nearest shop.
53.7%
Lower than 54% of urban centre areas.
Share of local homes within a 15-minute walk of groceries or everyday shopping. Homes are counted as addresses (G-NAF), not people.
85.6%
Higher than 77% of urban centre 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.
61.0%
Lower than 57% of urban centre areas.
Share of local homes within a 15-minute walk of a school. Homes are counted as addresses (G-NAF), not people.
94.9%
Higher than 57% of urban centre 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.
51.6%
Higher than 63% of urban centre 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 terrain is much steeper than the state average, with a mean slope of 11.3%. There are 71 intersections per square kilometre, and the number of walkable amenities per 1,000 residents is far above the New South Wales figure.
28.9
Higher than 72% of urban centre 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.
71
Higher than 86% of urban centre areas.
Walkable street intersections per square kilometre. Denser, better-connected street grids give more direct routes on foot than winding, cul-de-sac layouts.
11.3%
Higher than 93% of urban centre 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 Blue Mountains [Census of Population and Housing]. CensusAtlas, used under CC BY 4.0. https://censusatlas.au/region/ucl/UCL112003/blue-mountains/topic/walkability
