Top Urbanist University Communities in North America

I’ve spent half of my life in academia, and I’ve felt the difference it makes when a university community is walkable, bikeable, and has access to transit. The best urbanist university community I experienced first-hand was the University of British Columbia in Vancouver, Canada. It has a walk score of 80, a transit score of 74, and a bike score of 79.

I’m now at Texas Tech University in Lubbock, USA. It is just about the polar opposite, with a walk score of 39, a transit score of 21, and a bike score of 43. It feels almost impossible to navigate Lubbock without a vehicle.

I started to think about this topic after watching 10 Best Universities for Urbanism In North America: Colleges With Great Transit, Walking and Biking. I was proud to see three Canadian universities on the list: #9 Toronto Metropolitan University, #4 Université du Québec à Montréal, and #2 University of Toronto.