Please in my front yard Designing streets for people, not cars PIA National Congress 1st May 2012 Paul Morris

Typical streets in inner suburban Adelaide Typically very low volume Very wide carriageways Street parking Range of streetscaping Range of problems Speeding and safety concerns by residents Of course what is common about all of these streets

Title space for people? Narrow footpaths Poor condition Poor connectivity at street corners Can be difficult for two people to walk side by side – try with 2 children walking to school

Traffic management through the 90’s and 00’s Attempts to deal with traffic speed and volume through retro-fitting devices/treatments Very difficult with community – road humps moved up and down the street to find acceptable location What about space for people though – NEXT SLIDE

The narrow footpaths remain People jammed against the side of the road Local government is investing a lot of money in streets but are we getting the best results for the future The street design from the 50’s and 60’s has not changed in essence – these were fine for lower density of motor vehicles – more people walking and cycling at the time – things have changed

Local government investment Footpaths upgraded – great surface New kerbs to replace old Have we achieved an improvement in real terms?

Local Streets and Active Transport every street should promote the choice for walking or cycling public transport bus stops train stations schools primary schools – walking and cycling on footpaths high schools – walking footpaths – cycling on roads Recent projects we have been involved with have developed this objective Inner suburban areas are the focus of high density living Will the existing infrastructure support this change? High people generating activities in these areas include public transport and schools Improvements to the infrastructure can have a real impact on how people choose to get to their destinations All public transport trips will start with walking, and could be cycling (to train stations) Schools in particular are a focus for local government – often the source of traffic management issues Often no real solutions available due to the compressed demand for parking and traffic access Walking and cycling offers a solution

Best practice – guiding principles shared use of streets or maximise space for people making streets safer with low speed environment making streets more enjoyable and safe for people through quality of journey give people space to walk encouraging public life on streets good public lighting and shade preservation of the grid for good connectivity destinations for walking within 400 to 800 metres So how can we get people to change their views about walking and cycling These are some best practice principles from recent projects These all contribute to the development of alternative street designs

Consider this street Describe it

Possible solution Describe it

Plan view and birds eye view Describe it

Again typical residential street Describe it

Can we reallocate space away from the car? Describe it

Describe it Shared path on one side? Lots of shade Are these all dreams – not so

Some of these ideas have been developed already Describe each Parkside Adelaide - east end Osborne (The Walkway) Unley

“The future is always beginning now” Mark Strand