Getting around Saltspring Island
à portée’s map shows the trip on foot, by bike and by transit from every populated block in Saltspring Island to the nearest grocery store, pharmacy, school, park and other everyday places. It is free, with no account.
- residents in 2021
- 11,635
- within a 15-minute walk of a grocery store
- 12%
- of 1,000 communities for groceries on foot
- 700th
Open the Saltspring Island map
Travel times across Saltspring 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 Saltspring Island
The share of Saltspring 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 | 10%over an hour | 12%typical 37 min | 10%over an hour |
| Pharmacy | 7%over an hour | 10%typical 59 min | 7%over an hour |
| Park | 35%typical 15 min | 60%typical 7 min | 36%typical 15 min |
| Elementary school | 4%typical 53 min | 19%typical 32 min | 4%typical 49 min |
| Place | On foot | By bike | By transit, weekday morning peak |
|---|---|---|---|
| Grocery store | 12%over an hour | 17%typical 37 min | 12%over an hour |
| Pharmacy | 10%over an hour | 14%typical 59 min | 10%over an hour |
| Park | 52%typical 15 min | 74%typical 7 min | 52%typical 15 min |
| Elementary school | 8%typical 53 min | 27%typical 32 min | 8%typical 49 min |
| Place | On foot | By bike | By transit, weekday morning peak |
|---|---|---|---|
| Grocery store | 15%over an hour | 25%typical 37 min | 15%over an hour |
| Pharmacy | 12%over an hour | 16%typical 59 min | 12%over an hour |
| Park | 62%typical 15 min | 84%typical 7 min | 62%typical 15 min |
| Elementary school | 15%typical 53 min | 37%typical 32 min | 15%typical 49 min |
| Place | On foot | By bike | By transit, weekday morning peak |
|---|---|---|---|
| Grocery store | 20%over an hour | 38%typical 37 min | 20%over an hour |
| Pharmacy | 17%over an hour | 21%typical 59 min | 17%over an hour |
| Park | 76%typical 15 min | 99%typical 7 min | 76%typical 15 min |
| Elementary school | 24%typical 53 min | 47%typical 32 min | 25%typical 49 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.
Saltspring Island in numbers
12% of Saltspring 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 | 10% | 12% | 15% | 20% | over an hour |
| Pharmacy | 7% | 10% | 12% | 17% | over an hour |
| Park | 35% | 52% | 62% | 76% | 15 min |
| Elementary school | 4% | 8% | 15% | 24% | 53 min |
Within a 15-minute walk, beside British Columbia and Canada
| Place | Saltspring Island | British Columbia | Canada | Rank among the 1,000 communities with a page |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Grocery store | 12% | 48% | 45% | 700th of 1,00095th of 155 in British Columbia |
| Pharmacy | 10% | 48% | 51% | 745th of 1,000100th of 155 in British Columbia |
| Park | 52% | 86% | 82% | 586th of 1,000105th of 155 in British Columbia |
| Elementary school | 8% | 58% | 55% | 785th of 1,000120th of 155 in British Columbia |
Saltspring Island British Columbia
Communities of a similar size
The communities closest to Saltspring 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 |
|---|---|---|
| L'Île-Perrot | 11,638 | 57% |
| Saltspring Island | 11,635 | 12% |
| St. Clements | 11,586 | 1% |
| Saint-Sauveur | 11,580 | 31% |
| View Royal | 11,575 | 60% |
More places across the Capital Regional District census division
The Capital Regional District census division has 415,451 residents, 3% of them in Saltspring Island. The share of them within a 15-minute walk of more kinds of place:
- Convenience store50%
- Café57%
- Bakery39%
- Library21%
- Playground79%
- Childcare53%
- Community centre34%
- Clinic38%
Other communities in the Capital 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 Saltspring Island walkable?
One measure is the share of residents within a 15-minute walk of everyday places. In Saltspring Island, 12% 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, Saltspring Island ranks 700th of 1,000 communities.
Can you get around Saltspring Island by bike?
By bike, 17% of Saltspring Island residents reach a grocery store within 15 minutes, 14% a pharmacy, 74% a park and 27% an elementary school. On foot, 12% are within 15 minutes of a grocery store. The typical trip to a grocery store takes 37 min by bike and over an hour 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 Saltspring Island?
By transit at the weekday morning peak, 12% of Saltspring Island residents reach a grocery store within 15 minutes, against 12% on foot and 17% by bike. These times include the walk to and from the stops and the wait. The typical trip takes over an hour by transit and over an hour on foot. Where transit would be slower than walking, the time shown is the walk.
Is Saltspring Island a 15-minute city?
It depends on which everyday places you count. Within a 15-minute walk, 12% of residents reach a grocery store, 10% a pharmacy, 52% a park and 8% 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 Saltspring Island compare with communities of a similar size?
In Saltspring Island, 12% of residents live within a 15-minute walk of a grocery store; in the communities closest to it in population, the share is 57% in L'Île-Perrot, 1% in St. Clements, 31% in Saint-Sauveur and 60% in View Royal.
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
Saltspring Island in brief
- Province
- British Columbia
- Census division
- Capital Regional District
- Census subdivision code
- 5917027
- Residents in 2021
- 11,635
- 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