Getting around Nanaimo: walking, cycling and transit times
à portée’s map shows the trip on foot, by bike and by transit from every populated block in Nanaimo to the nearest grocery store, pharmacy, school, park and other everyday places. It is free, with no account.
- residents in 2021
- 99,863
- within a 15-minute walk of a grocery store
- 33%
- typical walk to a grocery store
- 22 min
- of 1,000 communities for groceries on foot
- 380th
Travel times across Nanaimo
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 Nanaimo
The share of Nanaimo 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 | 16%typical 22 min | 58%typical 9 min | 16%typical 20 min |
| Pharmacy | 25%typical 18 min | 66%typical 7 min | 25%typical 17 min |
| Park | 95%typical 4 min | >99%typical 1 min | 95%typical 4 min |
| Elementary school | 20%typical 18 min | 77%typical 7 min | 21%typical 18 min |
| Place | On foot | By bike | By transit, weekday morning peak |
|---|---|---|---|
| Grocery store | 33%typical 22 min | 76%typical 9 min | 34%typical 20 min |
| Pharmacy | 44%typical 18 min | 79%typical 7 min | 46%typical 17 min |
| Park | 98%typical 4 min | >99%typical 1 min | 98%typical 4 min |
| Elementary school | 40%typical 18 min | 93%typical 7 min | 41%typical 18 min |
| Place | On foot | By bike | By transit, weekday morning peak |
|---|---|---|---|
| Grocery store | 47%typical 22 min | 84%typical 9 min | 51%typical 20 min |
| Pharmacy | 56%typical 18 min | 88%typical 7 min | 61%typical 17 min |
| Park | 99%typical 4 min | 100%typical 1 min | >99%typical 4 min |
| Elementary school | 63%typical 18 min | 96%typical 7 min | 65%typical 18 min |
| Place | On foot | By bike | By transit, weekday morning peak |
|---|---|---|---|
| Grocery store | 66%typical 22 min | 96%typical 9 min | 74%typical 20 min |
| Pharmacy | 73%typical 18 min | 96%typical 7 min | 81%typical 17 min |
| Park | >99%typical 4 min | 100%typical 1 min | >99%typical 4 min |
| Elementary school | 87%typical 18 min | 99%typical 7 min | 91%typical 18 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.
Nanaimo in numbers
33% of Nanaimo 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 | 16% | 33% | 47% | 66% | 22 min |
| Pharmacy | 25% | 44% | 56% | 73% | 18 min |
| Park | 95% | 98% | 99% | >99% | 4 min |
| Elementary school | 20% | 40% | 63% | 87% | 18 min |
Within a 15-minute walk, beside British Columbia and Canada
| Place | Nanaimo | British Columbia | Canada | Rank among the 1,000 communities with a page |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Grocery store | 33% | 48% | 45% | 380th of 1,00063rd of 155 in British Columbia |
| Pharmacy | 44% | 48% | 51% | 238th of 1,00034th of 155 in British Columbia |
| Park | 98% | 86% | 82% | 98th of 1,00019th of 155 in British Columbia |
| Elementary school | 40% | 58% | 55% | 369th of 1,00067th of 155 in British Columbia |
Nanaimo British Columbia
Communities of a similar size
The communities closest to Nanaimo 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 |
|---|---|---|
| Red Deer | 100,844 | 37% |
| Nanaimo | 99,863 | 33% |
| Strathcona County | 99,225 | 23% |
| Pickering | 99,186 | 36% |
| Lethbridge | 98,406 | 45% |
More places across the Nanaimo Regional District census division
The Nanaimo Regional District census division has 170,367 residents, 59% of them in Nanaimo. The share of them within a 15-minute walk of more kinds of place:
- Convenience store32%
- Café35%
- Bakery17%
- Library8%
- Playground48%
- Childcare32%
- Community centre18%
- Clinic19%
Other communities in the Nanaimo Regional District area
Beside each community is the share of its residents who can reach a grocery store within a 15-minute walk.
- Parksville42%
- Qualicum Beach18%
- Nanaimo F8%
- Nanaimo G2%
- Nanaimo A20%
- Nanaimo E11%
- Nanaimo B3%
- Nanaimo H12%
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 Nanaimo walkable?
One measure is the share of residents within a 15-minute walk of everyday places. In Nanaimo, 33% 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, Nanaimo ranks 380th of 1,000 communities.
Can you get around Nanaimo by bike?
By bike, 76% of Nanaimo residents reach a grocery store within 15 minutes, 79% a pharmacy, over 99% a park and 93% an elementary school. On foot, 33% are within 15 minutes of a grocery store. The typical trip to a grocery store takes 9 min by bike and 22 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 Nanaimo?
By transit at the weekday morning peak, 34% of Nanaimo residents reach a grocery store within 15 minutes, against 33% on foot and 76% by bike. These times include the walk to and from the stops and the wait. The typical trip takes 20 min by transit and 22 min on foot. Where transit would be slower than walking, the time shown is the walk.
Is Nanaimo a 15-minute city?
It depends on which everyday places you count. Within a 15-minute walk, 33% of residents reach a grocery store, 44% a pharmacy, 98% a park and 40% 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 Nanaimo compare with communities of a similar size?
In Nanaimo, 33% of residents live within a 15-minute walk of a grocery store; in the communities closest to it in population, the share is 37% in Red Deer, 23% in Strathcona County, 36% in Pickering and 45% in Lethbridge.
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
Nanaimo in brief
- Province
- British Columbia
- Census division
- Nanaimo Regional District
- Census subdivision code
- 5921007
- Residents in 2021
- 99,863
- 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