Thanks to @Neil_Zee for shooting our lighting celebration. #IAMDOWNTOWN

The unbelievable happened. People, kids, babies, dogs.... Walking down 124 Street Business Association for hours. Filling up the space. Use the streets.

Ppl mostly only walked down the west side of the street, it was a super clear preference. A "desire line" The other side? Mostly empty.

What's on the west sided 124 street? Cafés & restaurants. Many in a row. Places like Remedy Café Edmonton and Credo Coffee and even Starbucks

What on the east side? Closed art galleries, a "dog wash" a surface parking lot, offices closed on the weekend.

What does this east/west difference say about what pedestrians want? How they feel? What did the street tell me?

Pedestrians want to feel safe and enclosed. They want not only a nice street but "permeable space." Seeing ppl in windows at street level

Ppl also follow each other. They move together wordlessly in a beautiful dance. The more ppl you have the more ppl you will get #walkability

You can't "test" the pedestrian performance of a street until you see it "flex." Used by many all at once. Then its secrets are revealed.

The thing is... The most beautiful thing. Is that this actually happened on a dark, cold snowy day in #yegwinter - so what does this say?

#walkability is not about winter. Nope. It is not. It's not just about routes. It's not just about destinations. It's not just about design

BUT. Once you get a destination like #AllIsBright with a great route and good design. Magic can happen. Even in November.

It's happening right now. #AllIsBright #yegwinter #walkability - go see the pedestrian miracle for yourself on 124 Street Business Association

awesome! RT Robert Dickinson: Bridge in use and kids playing at the river.

* in Calgary

Farrell: “The pedestrian realm is treated as esoteric, but it’s fundamental.. Everyone’s a pedestrian. #yyccc

.@DruhFarrell Brian Pincott Evan Woolley Naheed Nenshi . only ten of thousands of pedestrians "left in the lurch" . #Beltline aka "the lurch" ./7

"Some cities take out benches to stop drug addicts using them. In #Copenhagen, we put in 2x as many benches"—Jan Gehl