Evaluation of route choice for walking commutes to school and street space optimization in old urban areas of China based on a child-friendly orientation: The case of the Wuyi Park area in Zhengzhou

Walking to school promotes the health of school-aged children. The safety and comfort of the walking environment are lacking in China due to the prioritization of motorized traffic. This paper focuses on the choice of walking routes for school-aged children commuting in old urban areas of China. A walking route choice model is constructed by combining a weighted Voronoi diagram and the closest facility analysis in ArcMap. The walking route choices of school-aged children from home to school and the flows along routes are analysed. Based on the model results, targeted design suggestions for updating existing street spaces are proposed.