When someone says that they are going to go “a block” somewhere, it is not always easy to understand how far that really is. This is because a “block” is a unit of measurement that varies widely depending on where you are located and the city planning conventions that are in use.

For example, a standard city block in New York is 311 feet long. This is much larger than the blocks found in most other cities, and as a result there are generally more blocks per mile when compared to New York.

While there is no single standard size for a city block, it is typical for them to be rectangular in shape. However, some cities have blocks that are irregular (also known as “organic”).

Another important thing to note is that when people say that they will go to a location “a block away,” it refers to the distance between two parallel streets in a street grid. This is different from a walking path or a road, as these are usually measured by distance and speed.

While the concept of a city block may vary widely in different locations, there is generally one constant when it comes to the number of blocks that make up a mile. In New York, there are typically 16 blocks to the mile, while in most other cities this is around 16. If you are planning on walking a distance that will take multiple blocks, it is important to understand how long a block actually is.