Kansas City's low walkability in KCStar

An editorial in today's Kansas City Star discusses KC's low walkability rating (98th among 100 similar sized cities):

Our metropolitan area is spread out and has lots of highways, which encourage vehicle use. A Canadian study said spending 30 minutes a day in a car increases the risk of obesity by 3 percent.
Kansas City’s higher-than-average crime rate hurts our ranking, as do the cold winters. And few people walk to work.
Walking is great exercise, so this discouraging ranking needs attention.
One good response is to add trees that shade sidewalks, which can woo walkers even on hot summer days. Downtown Kansas City hopes to add pedestrian traffic by connecting the Sprint Center and an entertainment district.
Also, local elected officials ought to continue promoting the MetroGreen system of trails throughout the area. In the last year governments have built miles of trails in Clay and Platte counties, connected some paths in Johnson County, and continued working on new ones near the Missouri River.

This editorial provides an opportunity for you to speak up for better walkability (and bicycleability, which is also very low) in KC via a letter to the editor of the Star. Email letters@kcstar.com. <?PHP $tags="mobikefed, kansas city, walkability, statistics"; ??>