Getting around Amherst: walking, cycling and transit times
à portée’s map shows the trip on foot, by bike and by transit from every populated block in Amherst to the nearest grocery store, pharmacy, school, park and other everyday places. It is free, with no account.
- residents in 2021
- 9,404
- within a 15-minute walk of a grocery store
- 44%
- typical walk to a grocery store
- 17 min
- of 1,000 communities for groceries on foot
- 208th
Travel times across Amherst
Each block is coloured by the trip from it to the nearest place of the kind you pick, on foot, by bike or by transit. Move the map, or open it in à portée for any address and all 29 kinds of place.
Transit times are for a weekday at peak hours. A free plus account adds a mode and a time limit for each place, and transit at night on weekdays and at midday on Saturday and Sunday.
Getting around Amherst
The share of Amherst residents within a trip of each place, and the typical trip, by each way of getting there the free map offers.
| Place | On foot | By bike | By transit, weekday morning peak |
|---|---|---|---|
| Grocery store | 24%typical 17 min | 84%typical 7 min | 24%typical 17 min |
| Pharmacy | 18%typical 18 min | 65%typical 9 min | 18%typical 18 min |
| Park | 76%typical 6 min | 93%typical 2 min | 76%typical 6 min |
| Elementary school | 24%typical 16 min | 82%typical 6 min | 24%typical 16 min |
| Place | On foot | By bike | By transit, weekday morning peak |
|---|---|---|---|
| Grocery store | 44%typical 17 min | 99%typical 7 min | 44%typical 17 min |
| Pharmacy | 39%typical 18 min | 93%typical 9 min | 39%typical 18 min |
| Park | 89%typical 6 min | 99%typical 2 min | 89%typical 6 min |
| Elementary school | 47%typical 16 min | 98%typical 6 min | 48%typical 16 min |
| Place | On foot | By bike | By transit, weekday morning peak |
|---|---|---|---|
| Grocery store | 64%typical 17 min | 100%typical 7 min | 64%typical 17 min |
| Pharmacy | 64%typical 18 min | 100%typical 9 min | 64%typical 18 min |
| Park | 93%typical 6 min | 100%typical 2 min | 93%typical 6 min |
| Elementary school | 66%typical 16 min | >99%typical 6 min | 66%typical 16 min |
| Place | On foot | By bike | By transit, weekday morning peak |
|---|---|---|---|
| Grocery store | 86%typical 17 min | 100%typical 7 min | 86%typical 17 min |
| Pharmacy | 88%typical 18 min | 100%typical 9 min | 88%typical 18 min |
| Park | 97%typical 6 min | 100%typical 2 min | 97%typical 6 min |
| Elementary school | 96%typical 16 min | 100%typical 6 min | 96%typical 16 min |
Cycling and transit follow the street network, hills included. A transit trip includes the walk to and from the stops, at the median departure of a weekday morning peak, and is never slower than walking the whole way. Within 15 minutes means under 16: times are rounded down to the whole minute.
Amherst in numbers
44% of Amherst residents live within a 15-minute walk of a grocery store, compared with 26% across Nova Scotia and 45% across Canada.
Residents within a walk of each place
| Place | 10 min | 15 min | 20 min | 30 min | Typical walk |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Grocery store | 24% | 44% | 64% | 86% | 17 min |
| Pharmacy | 18% | 39% | 64% | 88% | 18 min |
| Park | 76% | 89% | 93% | 97% | 6 min |
| Elementary school | 24% | 47% | 66% | 96% | 16 min |
Within a 15-minute walk, beside Nova Scotia and Canada
| Place | Amherst | Nova Scotia | Canada | Rank among the 1,000 communities with a page |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Grocery store | 44% | 26% | 45% | 208th of 1,0007th of 49 in Nova Scotia |
| Pharmacy | 39% | 27% | 51% | 312th of 1,0008th of 49 in Nova Scotia |
| Park | 89% | 62% | 82% | 263rd of 1,0004th of 49 in Nova Scotia |
| Elementary school | 47% | 30% | 55% | 278th of 1,0002nd of 49 in Nova Scotia |
Amherst Nova Scotia
Communities of a similar size
The communities closest to Amherst in population, and the share of their residents within a 15-minute walk of a grocery store. Communities are 2021 census subdivisions (cities, towns, counties and other municipalities), compared within their municipal boundaries.
| Community | Residents | Grocery within 15 min |
|---|---|---|
| New Glasgow | 9,471 | 49% |
| Laurentian Valley | 9,450 | 20% |
| Mono | 9,421 | 2% |
| Amherst | 9,404 | 44% |
| The Blue Mountains | 9,390 | 14% |
More places across the Cumberland County census division
The Cumberland County census division has 30,538 residents, 31% of them in Amherst. The share of them within a 15-minute walk of more kinds of place:
- Convenience store20%
- Café29%
- Bakery2%
- Library11%
- Playground14%
- Childcare16%
- Community centre19%
- Clinic5%
Other communities in the Cumberland County area
Beside each community is the share of its residents who can reach a grocery store within a 15-minute walk.
Shares of 2021 residents of populated census blocks, on foot along the street network. How the walking times are computed
Travel times are our best estimates from open data published October 8, 2026 and can contain errors. Walking and cycling times are rounded down, so “within 15 minutes” means under 16. Check before an important decision, and tell us if something looks wrong.
Questions
Is Amherst walkable?
One measure is the share of residents within a 15-minute walk of everyday places. In Amherst, 44% of residents live within a 15-minute walk of a grocery store, compared with 26% across Nova Scotia and 45% across Canada. On this measure, Amherst ranks 208th of 1,000 communities.
Can you get around Amherst by bike?
By bike, 99% of Amherst residents reach a grocery store within 15 minutes, 93% a pharmacy, 99% a park and 98% an elementary school. On foot, 44% are within 15 minutes of a grocery store. The typical trip to a grocery store takes 7 min by bike and 17 min on foot. Cycling times follow the street network, hills included; they don’t say whether a street is safe or comfortable to ride.
Does transit help you reach everyday places in Amherst?
By transit at the weekday morning peak, 44% of Amherst residents reach a grocery store within 15 minutes, against 44% on foot and 99% by bike. These times include the walk to and from the stops and the wait. The typical trip takes 17 min by transit and 17 min on foot. Where transit would be slower than walking, the time shown is the walk.
Is Amherst a 15-minute city?
It depends on which everyday places you count. Within a 15-minute walk, 44% of residents reach a grocery store, 39% a pharmacy, 89% a park and 47% an elementary school. These figures count each place separately; open the map to see how many residents have all four within 15 minutes, for the places you choose.
How does Amherst compare with communities of a similar size?
In Amherst, 44% of residents live within a 15-minute walk of a grocery store; in the communities closest to it in population, the share is 49% in New Glasgow, 20% in Laurentian Valley, 2% in Mono and 14% in The Blue Mountains.
Where does this data come from?
Walking, cycling and transit times follow the street network, hills included, from each populated 2021 census block to the nearest place of each kind. Transit uses the operators’ published timetables at the weekday morning peak. Places come from OpenStreetMap and Overture Maps, with health care and schools checked against Statistics Canada’s open databases. Shares are weighted by 2021 population. Data published 8 October 2026. How the times are computed
Amherst in brief
- Province
- Nova Scotia
- Census division
- Cumberland County
- Census subdivision code
- 1211011
- Residents in 2021
- 9,404
- Data published
- 8 October 2026
Sources: places from OpenStreetMap (© OpenStreetMap contributors, ODbL) and the Overture Maps Foundation; census blocks, 2021 populations and municipal boundaries adapted from Statistics Canada under the Open Government Licence – Canada; transit times from the operators’ published timetables; elevation from Natural Resources Canada; province outlines from Natural Earth; links from Wikidata (CC0), Wikipedia and Wikivoyage (CC BY-SA). Figures derived from OpenStreetMap are under the ODbL. Data sources and licences