Cities worldwide are investing large amounts of money to make their streets vibrant, walkable, and pedestrian friendly. These efforts often rely on universal designs intended to make public spaces and streets more accessible to people who depend on a walking aid or individuals with visual impairments. While important, such efforts might not address the needs of all mobility-impaired individuals, namely people with cognitive impairments (e.g., intellectual and developmental impairments and autism). Recognizing this, in recent years there is growing attention to planning inclusive public spaces that are accessible to people of all mobility abilities. Nonetheless, more insights are needed on the travel needs and barriers of understudied groups like people with cognitive impairments. 
This talk will focus on the difficulties people with cognitive impairments experience when travelling and their implications for our understanding of walkability. The talk will present findings from an exploratory study on the travel of people with cognitive impairments in Israel. Results show that people with cognitive impairments vary in their ability to read and understand signs, spatial orientation skills and abilities, and the ability to find the way to new destinations and remember the way to previously visited destinations. The study also finds that people with cognitive impairments may not experience physical difficulties walking around but often find noise and crowded spaces uncomfortable. These findings have implications for the way we define successful walkable environments and plan for them. Specifically, the vibrancy that is often associated with good walkability may actually be perceived negatively by people with cognitive impairments. The talk will conclude with implications for our understanding of walkability in the context of cognitive impairments.