Accessible, Walkable, and Sociable Urban Environments

Despite increased focus on sustainable urbanism, many built environments fail to align movement functionality with inhabitants’ social needs. Conventional planning frequently separates accessibility from sociability, creating fragmented spaces that lack legibility and do not fully support natural pedestrian flow. Although walkability is acknowledged as vital for health and the environment, its connection to urban morphology remains understudied, resulting in settings that may be physically accessible but socially uninspiring. This persistent gap in research and practice challenges urban designers and architects seeking to foster vibrant, community-oriented spaces.This Research Topic aims to bridge spatial analysis and social behaviour by investigating how built environment configuration shapes human experience. We focus on the intersection of accessibility, walkability, and sociability, emphasising the application of Space Syntax and other advanced morphological tools in conjunction with empirical analysis. Our goal is to assess how urban and architectural design can incorporate findings from environmental psychology, advancing inclusive, evidence-based solutions for sociable public spaces. By presenting recent developments in spatial cognition and urban analysis, this Research Topic seeks to inspire innovative strategies for future mobility and design practice.This collection welcomes original research, case studies, and theoretical contributions that explore the complex relationships between physical space and social life. Submissions applying Space Syntax, investigating cognitive mapping and wayfinding, or analysing the psychological effects of spatial configuration are encouraged.Themes of interest include, but are not limited to:• The role of urban morphology in enabling social encounters• Advanced walkability and accessibility modelling• Spatial legibility and its influence on wayfinding• Environmental psychology and cognitive mapping across urban contexts• Integrating spatial syntax with social behavioural dataArticle types considered: original research, case studies, and theoretical papers. Topic editors: Reza Askarizad, Tomasz Bradecki Source: https://www.frontiersin.org/research-topics/78283/accessible-walkable-and-sociable-urban-environments