I will be talking on BBC Bristol about pavement parking and #walking, obviously!
Tomorrow 9.40 am.

#walkability #citiesforpeople #parking

@wellschmaltz @citybeautiful

I'd follow #Urbanism #walkability #cities #MassTransit #PublicTransport and #UrbanPlanning

You can follow the Fuck Cars Lemmy group from Mastodon by using the hashtag @fuck_cars

And here are some interesting accounts that are worth following:
@heartlandurbanist_channel
@heartlandurbanist
@wongm
@DrTCombs
@jakecoppinger
@sara_stace
@sbg_arch
@julie
@philipthalis
@philip
@JessScully
@notjustbikes
@danielbowen
@parismarx
@jaredwhite
@SydneyCyclewaysFan
@walk_sydney
@Sydney_Stations
@sydneyurbanismnews
@RM_Transit
@nerd4cities
@AmericanFietser
@railmaps
@AussieWirraway
@Transportist
@YimbyEarth
@straphanger
@BrentToderian
@jroper
@Lats
@augustusbrown
@CelloMomOnCars
@transportist

My @Flipboard magazine “Happy Cities” has been a lot of fun to post to. If you're as interested in #WalkableCities with dramatically reduced car traffic as I am, check it out!

https://flipboard.com/@jaredcwhite/happy-cities-6retv5m2y

#CarFree #Urbanism #UrbanPlanning #Cycling #Walkability

Here's a look into the bold changes that cities made to road space allocation during the pandemic.

In this thought-provoking video, Dr Tabitha Combs (@DrTCombs ) from the University of North Carolina examines how communities responded to the changing demands for mobility during the COVID-19 pandemic.

https://urbanists.video/w/5FgLJv6aRz3YHSkgv6WJa3

#urbanism #UrbanPlanning @green @fuck_cars #roads #transport #planning #walkability #walking

We know this street design is deadly, so why do we keep building them like this?

As @seabikeblog notes: "80% of pedestrian deaths in Seattle happen on streets with multiple lanes in the same direction. So why is WSDOT building a brand new street with this dangerous design?"

https://urbanists.video/w/iLvaiPKjyfR9Kast31bGCg

#walking #walkability #WalkableCities #Urbanism #UrbanPlanning @fuck_cars @video

@jaredwhite @benjaminwoodyatt @parismarx A few more resources on YouTube and elsewhere I'd recommend.

A good jumping off point is Strong Towns: https://www.strongtowns.org/

It's an organisation that advocates for: "We seek to replace America’s post-war pattern of development, the Suburban Experiment, with a pattern of development that is financially strong and resilient. We advocate for cities of all sizes to be safe, livable, and inviting. We work to elevate local government to be the highest level of collaboration for people working together in a place, not merely the lowest level in a hierarchy of governments."

StrongTowns YouTube channel is up at https://www.youtube.com/@strongtowns

While it's based in Australia, the Public Transport Users Association has a host of great resources about transport and freeways on its website. @danielbowen from PTUA posts on Mastodon fairly regularly: https://www.ptua.org.au/myths/

For anything related to public transport, it's worth checking out RM Transit's channel: https://www.youtube.com/@RMTransit I think he's also on Mastodon at @RM_Transit

There's also Ray Delahunty, aka City Nerd, who's an urban planner turned YouTuber who sometimes posts here @nerd4cities https://www.youtube.com/@CityNerd

There's @AmericanFietser , who posts a lot about cycling infrastructure: https://www.youtube.com/@AmericanFietser

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#Planning #Urbanism #UrbanPlanning #Transport #Cities #WalkableCities #Walkability

@ajsadauskas@lemmy.ml Interesting conversation by @heartlandurbanist and Stem Heinz touching on a range of topics, including housing, density, public transport, and zoning reform.

While this video focus on Columbus, Ohio, the underlying issues apply to many cities across North America, Australia, and New Zealand.

"Columbus is working on the first full rewriting of its zoning code since the 1950s. The effort is called Zone In Columbus - and we shared two stories from our own neighborhood that we think make clear why this reform is so badly needed. Check it out and let us know what you think!"

#urbanism #UrbanPlanning #Cities #transit #walkability #planning @video @FediVideo

@timrichards @largess @glent @fuck_cars
Some more screenshots from streetview of the Docklands Hwy.

This traffic sewer isn't in Knox, Wyndham, Cragieburn, or Casey.

Nope, it's right next to one of Melbourne's main train stations (Southern Cross), where pedestrian access could help to activate the surrounding precincts.

It's also walking distance to the CBD.

No bike lanes, no footpaths.

#Docklands #VicPol #Cycling #Urbanism #Cities #UrbanPlanning #Trains #Melbourne #Victoria #Walkability #Walkable #WalkableCities

@HiddenLayer5 For everyone following along from Mastodon, here's @RM_Transit 's video on why North America can have walkable cities: https://youtu.be/nCgFYReYr44

#Urbanism #UrbanPlanning #Walkability

@jroper @maegul @ajsadauskas@lemmy.ml An example of somewhere that has done this pedestrian mixed space well in Australia is Hornsby in NSW, along Florence Street.

The street is paved with stone rather than gravel; it's level with the footpath; the area where cars are permitted demarcated with bollards rather than a gutter, to as well as with seating and planters.

Oh, and you know who is (or at least was) the local mayor of Hornsby Shire Council?

Philip Ruddock.

Yep, that Philip Ruddock.

It's not that difficult to do a mixed pedestrian space well.

If even someone like Philip Ruddock can figure it out, then frankly Melbourne City Council has no excuses.

#walkability #Hornsby #NSW #pedestrian #walking #cities #urbanism

@ajsadauskas@lemmy.ml Infrastructure Victoria is calling for sensible planning policies to put a stop to Melbourne's never-ending suburban sprawl.

From The Age: "In a major new report, Infrastructure Victoria has called for fast-tracked planning approvals for townhouses, relaxed zoning to permit more low-rise apartments and the abolishment of stamp duty and first-home-buyers subsidies to increase housing options and affordability.

"The agency’s report, released on Tuesday, says 1.3 million new homes need to be built in Melbourne to meet the projections that the city’s population will swell from 5 million people to more than 8 million over the next 30 years.

"But there will be mounting financial and social costs if that growth remains concentrated in the city’s outer-fringe “greenfield” areas, where tracts of farmland have been carved up for detached houses.

"Half a million people have moved to seven of Melbourne’s greenfield areas – the municipalities of Cardinia, Casey, Hume, Melton, Whittlesea, Wyndham and Mitchell – over the past decade, accounting for half of Victoria’s total population growth."

#Melbourne #Victoria #VicPol #AusPol #Politics #Urbanism #UrbanPlanning #Development #Cities #Walkability

https://www.theage.com.au/national/victoria/there-s-a-lot-at-stake-push-to-open-melbourne-s-suburbs-up-to-townhouses-apartments-20230327-p5cvii.html

@ajsadauskas@lemmy.ml The Melbourne City Council has just discovered that sticking up some signs that say "shared zone" isn't enough to make a great shared pedestrian space.

"Flinders Lane, Little Collins, Little Bourke and Little Lonsdale streets became “shared zones” in September 2020, with pedestrians given right of way and speed limits lowered from 40 km/h to 20 km/h.

"For the most part, pedestrians and drivers were unaware of the priority rules within the shared zone. Pedestrians generally waited for cars to pass before crossing the street and drivers were rarely observed yielding to pedestrians.”

"The review says the council should install more “traffic-calming” designs – like raised street sections, planter boxes or dining parklets – and paint or pave the streets to differentiate them from regular roads, where vehicles have priority."

https://www.theage.com.au/national/victoria/melbourne-s-little-streets-were-meant-to-be-a-pedestrian-paradise-but-drivers-aren-t-sharing-20230328-p5cvv3.html

#walkability #walking #streets #cities #Urbanism #UrbanPlanning #walk #cycling #bikes #CompleteStreets

Albany, New York is not a city, its a massive highway pit stop #urbanplanning #Walkability

Yep, bucking the system to create a more liveable world is surely a crime!

#carculture #livablecities #walkablecities #walkability #livability #carbonemmissions

Image: cartoon found on LinkedIn without attribution to author. If you know the original source please advise and I will attribute.

Minimum parking requirements ruin cities. They also undermine the ability of entrepreneurs to start new restaurants, shops, and small businesses that serve the local community: https://youtu.be/vUhOFUQDLQk

#urbanism #UrbanPlanning #cycling #cities #auspol #vicpol #nswpol #sapol #MassTransit #bikes #cycling #walking #walkability #PublicTransport

There's a new video up by @notjustbikes about the newly renovated central station in Amsterdam.

It includes a massive new underwater bicycle stable that holds around 7000, an improved waterfront and boat dock that was created by removing a road, and a new bus interchange. They offer seamless transfers to buses and trains, which run every six minutes.

But be warned: you will feel disappointed at your city's transport planning afterwards. (Especially if it involves Sydney Central, Flinders Street, Southern Cross, Roma Street, Perth station, or the Adelaide train shed.)

https://youtu.be/EqwasBTzZS8

#planning #urbanism #UrbanPlanning #cycling #bikes #trains #metro #walkability

I am so excited that our amazing international team* was awarded a grant to pilot a method for studying associations between walking environments and people's experiences. Specifically, we will be comparing experiences between direct routes, and routes that are greener, with less noise and pollution.

We are going to be using an innovative app - Go Jauntly - and examining inputs from pedestrians walking in Auckland, Bristol, and Buenos Aires (San Martin). The funder is the Volvo Research and Education Foundation. More info in the blog post below.
🌳 🌴 🚶‍♂️ 🚶‍♀️

#walking #walkability #streets #streetsforpeople #nature #greencities

* With Dr Miriam Ricci, Professor Erica Hinckson, Professor Melody Smith, Carla Galeota, Dr Lorena Vesclir, Hana Sutch, and Grant Waters.

https://blogs.uwe.ac.uk/transport-and-society/cts-researchers-launch-innovative-international-project-to-study-the-links-between-walking-environments-and-peoples-experiences-through-mobile-digital-technology/

Image: National Street Service, Gehl

Suburban sprawl is eating our farmland.

Urbanism and densification is often framed as being about building better cities.

What's often overlooked, but is just as important, is that it's also about protecting our farms and wilderness areas from suburban development.

Building better cities helps protect our sources of fresh food and water, as well as critical habitats for wildlife.

https://youtu.be/0zUMQFJW3A4

#Urbanism #UrbanPlanning #Densification #WalkableCities #Walkability #Cities #Conservation #Farming #Agriculture #Wildlife #Farms

With housing becoming increasingly unaffordable in our cities, is it time to rethink minimum parking requirements and turn that land over to housing?

That's exactly what a growing number of US cities are doing. If we create well-designed walkable mixed-use neighbourhoods with quality public transport and cycling infrastructure, the truth is we need a *lot* less parking.

"Parking garages are monuments to outdated beliefs about what makes cities thrive. They increasingly cater to cars that are rarely used – the typical car is parked 95% of the time – and ultimately facilitate urban sclerosis.

"A 2016 study found that it cost roughly US$24,000 to $34,000 to build every single new parking space in a garage – an amount that has surely grown. Developers typically pass on this expense to renters or buyers.

"Do U.S. cities still need to require the construction of parking spots for new residential and retail projects? Aren’t developers, designers and investors better positioned to worry about these issues for customers, clients or tenants?"

https://theconversation.com/city-planners-are-questioning-the-point-of-parking-garages-195151

#urbanism #UrbanPlanning #planning #parking #cars #roads #cycling #walkability #PublicTransport #MassTransit #trains #cities #sustainability

Higher density urban renewal projects often face criticism because of the bland or ugly buildings that get put up. But as a recent Sydney design competition shows, it doesn't have to be that way.

We can have medium density walkable developments, with buildings that respect the vernacular architecture of the local area. With green spaces. With buildings that are taller, yet not skyscrapers that overpower you with their scale. That improves on what was there previously.

Yes, it can be done. It is possible. All it takes it quality architectural and urban design.

"[Milly] Main, the Street Level Australia founder, said the competition’s purpose was to spur conversation about better ways to construct places — particularly better in-fill redevelopment of existing areas. 'Part of the holdup and the tension is that new density is 99 per cent of the time horrifically ugly,' We’ve got a political problem because nobody wants the density to be near them,” Main said."

https://www.smh.com.au/national/nsw/from-bleak-to-beauty-grand-designs-to-transform-an-unloved-city-block-20230130-p5cgfa.html

#Urbanism #UrbanPlanning #UrbanGreening #Architecture #ArchitecturalDesign #NSWpol #AusPol #Walkability