Living street
Encyclopedia
Street
A street is a paved public thoroughfare in a built environment. It is a public parcel of land adjoining buildings in an urban context, on which people may freely assemble, interact, and move about. A street can be as simple as a level patch of dirt, but is more often paved with a hard, durable...
in which, unlike in most 20th century streets, the needs of car drivers are secondary to the needs of users of the street as a whole. It is a space designed to be shared by pedestrians, playing children, bicyclists, and low-speed motor vehicles. This contrasts with the shared space
Shared space
Shared space is an urban design concept aimed at integrated use of public spaces. It encourages traffic engineers, urban planners and experts from other fields to consult with users of public space when planning and designing streets and squares in both built and non-built environments...
scheme philosophy which gives all road users equal priority in community spaces.
Some national schemes with similar principles are home zone
Home zone
Home Zone is a term used in the United Kingdom for a residential street or group of streets that are designed primarily to meet the interests of the local community, whether they are on foot, cycling, or in a car, enabling the street to operate primarily as a space for social use...
s in the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
and woonerf
Woonerf
A woonerf in the Netherlands and Flanders is a street where pedestrians and cyclists have legal priority over motorists. The techniques of shared spaces, traffic calming, and low speed limits are intended to improve pedestrian, bicycle, and automobile safety.-By country:In 1999 the Netherlands had...
in the Netherlands
Netherlands
The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...
. Most side streets in Tokyo
Tokyo
, ; officially , is one of the 47 prefectures of Japan. Tokyo is the capital of Japan, the center of the Greater Tokyo Area, and the largest metropolitan area of Japan. It is the seat of the Japanese government and the Imperial Palace, and the home of the Japanese Imperial Family...
are used similarly, without a similar national scheme.
For much of the twentieth century, streets were designed to ensure traffic flow, but it has become apparent that streets have many social and recreational functions which are severely impaired by fast car traffic. The living street is an attempt to design for all the functions of streets.
These streets are often at the same grade as curbs
Curb (road)
A curb, or kerb , is the edge where a raised pavement/sidewalk/footpath, road median, or road shoulder meets an unraised street or other roadway.-Function:...
and sidewalk
Sidewalk
A sidewalk, or pavement, footpath, footway, and sometimes platform, is a path along the side of a road. A sidewalk may accommodate moderate changes in grade and is normally separated from the vehicular section by a curb...
s. Cars are limited to a speed that does not disrupt other uses of the streets (usually defined to be pedestrian speed). To make this lower speed natural, the street is normally set up so that a car cannot drive in a straight line for significant distances, for example by placing planters at the edge of the street, alternating the side of the street the parking is on, or curving the street itself. Other traffic calming
Traffic calming
Traffic calming is intended to slow or reduce motor-vehicle traffic in order to improve the living conditions for residents as well as to improve safety for pedestrians and cyclists. Urban planners and traffic engineers have many strategies for traffic calming...
measures are also used. However, early methods of traffic calming such as speed humps are now avoided in favor of methods which make slower speeds more natural to drivers, rather than an imposition.
The woonerf
Woonerf
A woonerf in the Netherlands and Flanders is a street where pedestrians and cyclists have legal priority over motorists. The techniques of shared spaces, traffic calming, and low speed limits are intended to improve pedestrian, bicycle, and automobile safety.-By country:In 1999 the Netherlands had...
movement originated in the Netherlands in the seventies. Living streets have become common there, in Germany, and in Scandinavia, and are increasing in Britain.
Germany - Verkehrsberuhigter Bereich
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Belgium
- It is called either Dutch woonerf or French zone résidentielle.
- Low speed of 20 km/h
- usually same grade
- parking is only allowed in marked places.
Austria - Wohnstraße
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Spain - calle residencial
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France - Zone de rencontre
The French living street has been introduced in 2008 as Zone de rencontre.- Low speed of 20 km/h
- usually same grade
- parking restrictions not specified
Netherlands - woonerf
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Poland - Strefa zamieszkania
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Russia — Жилая зона
- Max speed — 20 km/h
- Forbidden:
- Through traffic;
- Training ride;
- Parking with engine running.
United Kingdom - Home Zone
http://www.homezones.org.uk/public/images/legislation/signing_02.jpg- see home zoneHome zoneHome Zone is a term used in the United Kingdom for a residential street or group of streets that are designed primarily to meet the interests of the local community, whether they are on foot, cycling, or in a car, enabling the street to operate primarily as a space for social use...
Sweden - Gångfartsområde (Walking speed area)
Switzerland - zone de rencontre
- http://www.zonederencontre.ch/home/index.aspx
- Introduced by the legislation change as of 28. September 2001
- Low speed of 20 km/h
- usually same grade
- parking is only allowed in marked places.
See also
- WoonerfWoonerfA woonerf in the Netherlands and Flanders is a street where pedestrians and cyclists have legal priority over motorists. The techniques of shared spaces, traffic calming, and low speed limits are intended to improve pedestrian, bicycle, and automobile safety.-By country:In 1999 the Netherlands had...
- Shared spaceShared spaceShared space is an urban design concept aimed at integrated use of public spaces. It encourages traffic engineers, urban planners and experts from other fields to consult with users of public space when planning and designing streets and squares in both built and non-built environments...
- engineering which removes comfort cues such as signs and lines and gives all road users equal priority - Complete streetsComplete streetsIn U.S. urban planning and highway engineering, complete streets are roadways designed and operated to enable safe, attractive, and comfortable access and travel for all users, including pedestrians, bicyclists, motorists and public transport users of all ages and abilities...
- Auto-free zone
- Montreal's Duluth Street(French)
- World Urbanism DayWorld Urbanism DayThe international organization for World Urbanism Day , also known as "World Town Planning Day", was founded in 1949 by the late Professor Carlos Maria della Paolera of the University of Buenos Aires, a graduate at the Institut d'urbanisme in Paris, to advance public and professional interest in...
External links
- Home Zones UK
- Living Streets UK
- Living streets in New Zealand
- http://www.streetparty.org.uk
- http://www.streetsalive.net