Getting around Bowen Island: walking, cycling and transit times
à portée’s map shows the trip on foot, by bike and by transit from every populated block in Bowen Island to the nearest grocery store, pharmacy, school, park and other everyday places. It is free, with no account.
- residents in 2021
- 4,256
- within a 15-minute walk of a grocery store
- 11%
- typical walk to a grocery store
- 49 min
- of 1,000 communities for groceries on foot
- 726th
Travel times across Bowen Island
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 Bowen Island
The share of Bowen Island 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 | 5%typical 49 min | 28%typical 16 min | 5%typical 49 min |
| Pharmacy | 6%typical 45 min | 32%typical 15 min | 6%typical 43 min |
| Park | 44%typical 12 min | 84%typical 5 min | 45%typical 12 min |
| Elementary school | 4%over an hour | 21%typical 24 min | 4%over an hour |
| Place | On foot | By bike | By transit, weekday morning peak |
|---|---|---|---|
| Grocery store | 11%typical 49 min | 48%typical 16 min | 12%typical 49 min |
| Pharmacy | 10%typical 45 min | 53%typical 15 min | 12%typical 43 min |
| Park | 61%typical 12 min | 89%typical 5 min | 63%typical 12 min |
| Elementary school | 6%over an hour | 37%typical 24 min | 7%over an hour |
| Place | On foot | By bike | By transit, weekday morning peak |
|---|---|---|---|
| Grocery store | 18%typical 49 min | 60%typical 16 min | 19%typical 49 min |
| Pharmacy | 19%typical 45 min | 64%typical 15 min | 21%typical 43 min |
| Park | 71%typical 12 min | 90%typical 5 min | 76%typical 12 min |
| Elementary school | 14%over an hour | 49%typical 24 min | 14%over an hour |
| Place | On foot | By bike | By transit, weekday morning peak |
|---|---|---|---|
| Grocery store | 28%typical 49 min | 74%typical 16 min | 29%typical 49 min |
| Pharmacy | 32%typical 45 min | 81%typical 15 min | 32%typical 43 min |
| Park | 88%typical 12 min | 95%typical 5 min | 88%typical 12 min |
| Elementary school | 23%over an hour | 55%typical 24 min | 23%over an hour |
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.
Bowen Island in numbers
11% of Bowen Island residents live within a 15-minute walk of a grocery store, compared with 48% across British Columbia and 45% across Canada.
Residents within a walk of each place
| Place | 10 min | 15 min | 20 min | 30 min | Typical walk |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Grocery store | 5% | 11% | 18% | 28% | 49 min |
| Pharmacy | 6% | 10% | 19% | 32% | 45 min |
| Park | 44% | 61% | 71% | 88% | 12 min |
| Elementary school | 4% | 6% | 14% | 23% | over an hour |
Within a 15-minute walk, beside British Columbia and Canada
| Place | Bowen Island | British Columbia | Canada | Rank among the 1,000 communities with a page |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Grocery store | 11% | 48% | 45% | 726th of 1,00099th of 155 in British Columbia |
| Pharmacy | 10% | 48% | 51% | 739th of 1,00098th of 155 in British Columbia |
| Park | 61% | 86% | 82% | 506th of 1,00092nd of 155 in British Columbia |
| Elementary school | 6% | 58% | 55% | 814th of 1,000126th of 155 in British Columbia |
Bowen Island British Columbia
Communities of a similar size
The communities closest to Bowen Island 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 |
|---|---|---|
| Altona | 4,267 | 44% |
| Marmora and Lake | 4,267 | 31% |
| Central Okanagan | 4,258 | 0% |
| Bowen Island | 4,256 | 11% |
| Cowichan Valley E | 4,253 | 0% |
More places across the Greater Vancouver Regional District census division
The Greater Vancouver Regional District census division has 2,642,825 residents, 0% of them in Bowen Island. The share of them within a 15-minute walk of more kinds of place:
- Convenience store65%
- Café68%
- Bakery51%
- Library26%
- Playground92%
- Childcare78%
- Community centre45%
- Clinic54%
Other communities in the Greater Vancouver Regional District 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 Bowen Island walkable?
One measure is the share of residents within a 15-minute walk of everyday places. In Bowen Island, 11% of residents live within a 15-minute walk of a grocery store, compared with 48% across British Columbia and 45% across Canada. On this measure, Bowen Island ranks 726th of 1,000 communities.
Can you get around Bowen Island by bike?
By bike, 48% of Bowen Island residents reach a grocery store within 15 minutes, 53% a pharmacy, 89% a park and 37% an elementary school. On foot, 11% are within 15 minutes of a grocery store. The typical trip to a grocery store takes 16 min by bike and 49 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 Bowen Island?
By transit at the weekday morning peak, 12% of Bowen Island residents reach a grocery store within 15 minutes, against 11% on foot and 48% by bike. These times include the walk to and from the stops and the wait. The typical trip takes 49 min by transit and 49 min on foot. Where transit would be slower than walking, the time shown is the walk.
Is Bowen Island a 15-minute city?
It depends on which everyday places you count. Within a 15-minute walk, 11% of residents reach a grocery store, 10% a pharmacy, 61% a park and 6% 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 Bowen Island compare with communities of a similar size?
In Bowen Island, 11% of residents live within a 15-minute walk of a grocery store; in the communities closest to it in population, the share is 44% in Altona, 31% in Marmora and Lake, 0% in Central Okanagan and 0% in Cowichan Valley E.
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
Bowen Island in brief
- Province
- British Columbia
- Census division
- Greater Vancouver Regional District
- Census subdivision code
- 5915062
- Residents in 2021
- 4,256
- 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