I think the point you are making -- and I agree -- is that the walkscore.com results are misleading. Because Barrington's major shopping venues (e.g., Shaws, Ace, etc.) are located in the heart of its downtown, Barrington scores higher on this scale. However, anyone who's ever tried to walk down Maple Avenue would clearly disagree that Barrington is more walkable than Bristol.
I happened to ride my bicycle from downtown Bristol to Stop & Shop this past Sunday. I wasn't sure about the sidewalks on Hope between Chestnut and Gooding, so I rode down Chestnut and over Naomi (which I know is 20mph and lightly traveled). Apart from riding on Naomi, there was either a nice wide shoulder for bicycles (e.g., Chestnut, Gooding), or a sidewalk for pedestrians, or both.
The ride was about 2.5 miles and it was a nice day. I wouldn't have wanted to walk 2.5 miles with a bag of groceries, but that's not due to issues of good sidewalks and pedestrian-friendly streets. It's only due to where Stop & Shop is located.
I like the way Bristol is laid out. I can walk or ride my bike to anything I need.
Among other important features, Viola's is only a half-mile up Wood street from my house... ;-)
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