PURPLE FLAG SNAPSHOT FOOTFALL COUNT
INTRODUCTION: WHAT IS A FOOTFALL COUNT?
A footfall count is a count that helps place managers ascertain the approximate number of visitors to a specific area e.g. a High
Street or shopping centre. It is seen as a key performance indicator by businesses and by government.
To conduct the footfall count you will need;
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
The AGORA Snapshot Footfall Count Table
A hand held counter
A pen
A stopwatch
A willing researcher
INSTRUCTIONS

Choose a convenient day and one that is free of a particular bias e.g. Saturday/ market day etc. (though you may wish to
undertake counts on these days as well as they will show peak volumes)

Select 6 or 8 ‘points’ (depending on size of location) within your Agora that represent key areas. These should include the
busiest part of the centre (the High Street; shopping centre entrance or the like) as well as key gateways to the centre
(routes from car parks or surrounding residential areas). For those that have Agora Maps use these where possible.

Each of the 6 or 8 points must be counted over a two minute session.

Each of the 6 or 8 points must be counted within a one hour period (this includes the time it takes to get to the next count
point) to gain a snapshot of the footfall in your Agora centre.

All 6 or 8 points must be counted five times each during the following set time periods;
1. 08:00-09:00am [points 1-6/8]
2.
3.
4.
5.
10:00-11:00am [points 1-6/8]
12:00-13:00pm [points 1-6/8]
15:00-16:00pm [points 1-6/8]
17:00-18:00pm [points 1-6/8]
PROCESS
1. Select the first point
2. Stand with your back to a wall and count each person that passes you (if this is a pedestrianised street/mall you should
count everyone who passes you across the whole width of the street, whichever direction they are moving in. If it is a
trafficked street, you should only count those people passing you on the one pavement (You should not count children who
appear to be under the age of 10) for two minutes exactly.
3. Enter the number counted in the Snapshot Footfall Count Table in the correct section.
4. Move quickly to the next count point as you will only have a five minute interval between counts.
5. When all points are completed add the numbers together from each row and enter them in the ‘Point Total’ cells at the end of
each row to discover you busiest point. Then add the numbers together from each column and enter them in the ‘Period
Total’ cells at the bottom of the table to discover you busiest time period.
6. To calculate the number of people flowing through a particular area in the day as a whole, take the Point Total and multiply
by 60 (you will have counted for 10 minutes out of a 10 hour day). To calculate the number of people flowing through the
area during the shopping day, you should take the Point Total for the three counts undertaken in the middle of the day (i.e.
excluding the first and last counts) and again multiply by 60 (i.e. you will have counted for 6 minutes in a 6 hour day).
IMPORTANT: Please ensure the data is captured within the one hour periods to ensure consistency.
RESOURCES NEEDED
To conduct the footfall count you will need:
6. The AGORA Snapshot Footfall Count Table (separate document)
7. A hand held counter.
8. A pen
9. A stopwatch
10. A willing researcher
Notes:

You can use this data in a number of ways. Ideally the survey should be repeated on a regular basis (typically 4 times a
year) to build up a time series. To develop the time series it is essential that the same day is used for each count.
Alternatively you may wish to count on several different days in one week, this is particularly useful if you have a Market Day
where footfall is notably different from non-market days and to distinguish between a weekday and Saturday. If you use this
method then you may want to repeat the surveys only twice a year. It is important to note weather conditions or any other
special factors (World Cup football/Olympics/major news story breaking) on your record sheet to allow comparison in future
years.

A single set of data gathered in this way may not be reliable as so many factors can determine whether a centre day is
typical. To test typicality you may want to check with retailers in the street concerned whether trading patterns on the day of
the count were ‘normal’ and also look at car park usage, if available. Reliability will increase with data gathered over time.
SNAPSHOT FOOTFALL COUNT TABLE
Day:
Date:
Point
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
Period Total
8:00 – 9:00am
Weather conditions:
10:00 – 11:00am
Time
12:00 – 13:00pm
Special factors:
15:00-16:00pm
17:00:18:00pm
Point Total
Snapshot Manual Footfall Count Results (EXAMPLE – REDDISH)
The footfall count was administered on [INSERT DAY & DATE – SEE COMPLETED FOOTFALL COUNT TABLE] in [WEATHER
CONDITIONS] and with [INSERT SPECIAL CONDITION(S) IF APPLICALBLE].
Six points were selected for monitoring that represent key areas in the town and represented the busiest areas e.g. high street and
shopping centre entrances/ exits [see table below for point titles]
Point No.
1
2
3
4
5
6
Point Title
Philip James
LJ’s
Natwest
Next Post Office
Corner Dover Street
Shapers
Each point was counted over a two minute session within a specific one hour period. There were five set one hour time periods
throughout the day in which all the points must be counted [see table below].
Period No.
1
2
3
4
5
Time Period
08:00-09:00am
10:00-11:00am
12:00-13:00pm
15:00-16:00pm
17:00-18:00pm
Points Monitored
1-6
1-6
1-6
1-6
1-6
The counter was instructed to stand with their back to a wall at the point(s) [if it was a pedestrianised street/ shopping centre/
arcade] and count each person who crossed their path, regardless of direction. If it was a trafficked point the counter was instructed
to count only those who are passing on one pavement, regardless of direction. The counter was further instructed to not count
children who appeared to be under the age of 10.
After each point count the number obtained was recorded in a footfall count table (ABOVE)
A snapshot footfall count is a measure that helps place managers ascertain the approximate number of visitors/users to or of a
specific area, the busiest sections, the busiest time periods, and indicates the attractiveness of the streets and areas that make up
a centre. It provides a qualitative measure and offers an indication of the potential customer base for shops, restaurants and other
venues.
The following table lists the count point titles for Reddish:
Point No.
1
2
3
4
5
6
Point Titles
Philip James
LJ’s
Natwest
Next Post Office
Corner Dover Street
Shapers
5000
No te1: to tal co unt figures [black] are summatio ns o f all po ints in a time perio d
4000
No te2: all the grey bar frequency figures in summatio n
indicate estimated to tal centre users o n the day.
To tal = 8160 users.
Graph 1
2 6 .6 %
No te3: percentages sho wn are
representative o f each time
perio d
3300
Count
3000
2 1%
18 .1%
2220
19 .1%
2520
2340
15 .2 %
1860
2000
1000
0
08:00-09:00am
10:00-11:00am
12:00-13:00pm
Tim e Period
15:00-16:00pm
17:00-18:00pm
The estimated centre user total for Reddish is 8160 people per day. Graph1 displays estimated hourly counts for Reddish
concluding that 12:00-13:00pm is the busiest time period [26.6% of total flow] and 17:00-18:00pm is the quietest [15.2%]. Between
10:00am and16:00pm is the busiest collated time period accounting for 66.7%% of total pedestrian traffic, however there is a
consistent rate of flow between 08:00am and 18:00pm.
18
Graph 2
Point 1
Point 2
16
Point 3
14
Point 4
Point 5
Traffic [people]
12
Point 6
10
8
6
4
2
0
08:00-09:00am
10:00-11:00am
12:00-13:00pm
Tim e Period
15:00-16:00pm
17:00-18:00pm
Note: ‘Traffic [people]’ is charted from the snapshot two minute count.
Graph 2 displays the fluctuations in pedestrian traffic between different points at different times of the day, essentially charting the
progression of footfall.
The highest pedestrian counts where recorded at Philip James and Natwest [points 1 & 3] where hourly flows achieved respective
estimated highs of 420 and 480 [people]. Point 3 was the most consistent point whose counts exceed that of all others throughout
the five time periods.
5000
Graph 3
4140
Total Count
4000
3000
2340
1920
2000
1440
1380
1020
1000
0
1
2
3
4
5
6
Point
Graph 3 displays the estimated daily counts for each point and demonstrates that points 2 & 3, situated in the heart of Rusholme,
have the highest recorded pedestrian traffic [50% of all traffic]. The graph also identifies no truly weak points indicating a healthy
pedestrian flow.