Shared space
Encyclopedia
Urban design
Urban design concerns the arrangement, appearance and functionality of towns and cities, and in particular the shaping and uses of urban public space. It has traditionally been regarded as a disciplinary subset of urban planning, landscape architecture, or architecture and in more recent times has...
concept aimed at integrated use of public spaces. It encourages traffic engineer
Traffic engineering (transportation)
For the engineering of communications and computer networks, see Teletraffic engineering.Traffic engineering is a branch of civil engineering that uses engineering techniques to achieve the safe and efficient movement of people and goods on roadways...
s, urban planner
Urban planner
An urban planner or city planner is a professional who works in the field of urban planning/land use planning for the purpose of optimizing the effectiveness of a community's land use and infrastructure. They formulate plans for the development and management of urban and suburban areas, typically...
s 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. The concept shares some characteristics with Living street
Living street
A living street is a street 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...
s.
Shared space removes the traditional segregation of motor vehicles, pedestrians and other road users. Conventional road priority management systems and devices such as kerbs, lines, signs and signals are replaced with an integrated, people-oriented understanding of public space, such that walking, cycling, shopping and driving cars become integrated activities.
History
The term 'shared space' was used by Tim Pharoah to describe informal street layouts with no traffic demarcation (see for example "Traffic Calming Guidelines" published by Devon County Council, 1991). The term has since been more widely applied to similar design concepts for main streets, intersections and squares, especially by Ben Hamilton-BaillieBen Hamilton-Baillie
Ben Hamilton-Baillie is an architect, urban designer and movement specialist from Bristol, United Kingdom. He is the director of his own company, Hamilton-Baillie Associates Ltd., where role he provides consultancy advice on traffic and urban renewal...
since the preparation of a European co-operation project in 2003. The shared space concept has been associated strongly with the work of Hans Monderman
Hans Monderman
Hans Monderman was a Dutch road traffic engineer and innovator. He was recognized forradically challenging criteria used to evaluate engineering solutions for street design...
, based on the observation that individuals' behaviour
Social behavior
In physics, physiology and sociology, social behavior is behavior directed towards society, or taking place between, members of the same species. Behavior such as predation which involves members of different species is not social...
in traffic
Traffic
Traffic on roads may consist of pedestrians, ridden or herded animals, vehicles, streetcars and other conveyances, either singly or together, while using the public way for purposes of travel...
is more positively affected by the built environment
Built environment
The term built environment refers to the human-made surroundings that provide the setting for human activity, ranging in scale from personal shelter and buildings to neighborhoods and cities that can often include their supporting infrastructure, such as water supply or energy networks.The built...
of the public space than it is by conventional traffic control devices
Vienna Convention on Road Signs and Signals
The Vienna Convention on Road Signs and Signals is an international treaty designed to increase road safety and aid international road traffic by standardising the signing system for road traffic in use internationally.This convention was agreed upon by the United Nations Economic and Social...
and regulations.
The goal of shared space is an improvement in road safety, encouraging negotiation of shared areas at appropriate speeds and with due consideration for the other users, using simple rules like giving way to the right. The term shared space should probably not be too closely defined, since there is wide scope for varying the design concept. For example, very similar street design projects to those carried out by Monderman were carried out in Chambery (France) by Michel Deronzier from the 1980s. He preferred the term pedestrian priority, but this was nevertheless achieved with a design philosophy that mirrored that of Hans Monderman.
This European Shared Space project (part of the Interreg IIIB-North Sea programme) between 2004 and 2008 developed new policies and methods for the design of public spaces with streets. Hans Monderman was the head of the project's "expert team" prior to his death in 2008.
Many 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 shared, though not as a matter of philosophy.
Philosophy
Safety, congestion, economic vitality and community severance can be effectively tackled in streets and other public spaces if they are designed and managed to allow traffic to be fully integrated with other human activity, not separated from it. A major characteristic of a street designed to this philosophy is the absence of traditional road markings, signs, traffic signals and the distinction between "road" and "pavementSidewalk
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...
". User behaviour becomes influenced and controlled by natural human interactions rather than by artificial regulation.
One of the principles behind the scheme, which is mentioned in an article about the increasing interest in such schemes in Europe, from the German magazine Der Spiegel
Der Spiegel
Der Spiegel is a German weekly news magazine published in Hamburg. It is one of Europe's largest publications of its kind, with a weekly circulation of more than one million.-Overview:...
, is that road rules strip motorists of the ability to be considerate. Monderman is quoted as saying: "We're losing our capacity for socially responsible behaviour, ...The greater the number of prescriptions, the more people's sense of personal responsibility dwindles." Another source attributes the following to Monderman: "When you don't exactly know who has right of way, you tend to seek eye contact with other road users... You automatically reduce your speed, you have contact with other people and you take greater care." In the same report the mayor of Bohmte
Bohmte
Bohmte is a municipality in the district of Osnabrück, in Lower Saxony, Germany. It is situated on the river Hunte, approx. 20 km northeast of Osnabrück...
, a town implementing such a scheme, is quoted as saying "We don't want the cars alone to have precedence, we want to try and make the area pleasant for everybody."
The shared space philosophy distinguishes between the fine-meshed slow network, and the larger-meshed fast network. The slow network, which is the subject of the shared space treatment, is characterised as the street network which make public space vital and accessible. On the slow network motor traffic is welcomed as a guest, but has to adapt to certain social norms of behaviour. The layout of the road must make this clear. The fast or supra traffic network, which allows traffic to reach destinations quickly, and which is designed using traditional traffic engineering methodologies, is essential if the slow network is to function properly.
A reason for the apparent paradox that reduced regulation leads to safer roads may be found by studying the risk compensation
Risk compensation
In ethology, risk compensation is an effect whereby individual people may tend to adjust their behavior in response to perceived changes in risk. It is seen as self-evident that individuals will tend to behave in a more cautious manner if their perception of risk or danger increases...
effect. Shared Space describe the effect:
In answer to a direct question about the role of local legislation, a member of the Shared Space Expert Team replied: "To understand how shared space works, it is important to move away from reliance on 'rights' and laws, and to recognize the potential for conventions and protocols ... Such conventions and protocols evolve rapidly and are very effective if the state does not intervene through regulation."
Road rules, particularly those concerned with priorities at unsigned junctions, vary in different jurisdictions, and thus may support or hinder shared space proposals.
Criticisms
There are certain reservations about the practicality of the shared space philosophy. In a report from the Associated PressAssociated Press
The Associated Press is an American news agency. The AP is a cooperative owned by its contributing newspapers, radio and television stations in the United States, which both contribute stories to the AP and use material written by its staff journalists...
it was commented that traditionalists in town planning departments say the schemes rob the motorists of vital information, and reported that a spokesman for Royal National Institute of Blind People criticised the removal of familiar features such as railings, kerbs and barriers.
Shared surfaces, which are generally used in shared space schemes, can cause concern for the blind and partially sighted who cannot visually negotiate their way with other road users, as the lack of separation implicit in these features has also removed their safe space. The UK's Guide Dogs for the Blind Associations "Say No to Shared Streets" campaign has the support of more than thirty other disability organisations. There have been similar concerns raised by other groups representing some of the more vulnerable members of society, including Leonard Cheshire Disability
Leonard Cheshire Disability
Leonard Cheshire Disability is a major health and welfare charity in the United Kingdom, founded in 1948 by RAF pilot Leonard Cheshire VC.In 2006–7 it had a total expenditure of £143 million, placing it in the top 30 of UK charities.-History:...
, the Royal National Institute for Deaf People
Royal National Institute for Deaf People
Action on Hearing Loss, formerly known as The Royal National Institute for Deaf People is a charitable organization working on behalf of the UK's 9 million deaf and hard of hearing people. The head office of RNID is in Islington, Central London . Its President is Lord Ashley of Stoke. The Chief...
and Mencap
Mencap
The Royal Mencap Society is a charity based in the UK that works with people with a learning disability.-Profile:Mencap is the UK's leading learning disability charity working with people with a learning disability and their families and carers...
, who have noted problems when negotiating a route with motor vehicle users, leading them to challenge its fundamental premise.
In New Zealand, concerns about such limitations of the shared space concept have led, in cooperation with disability organisations, to the introduction of vehicle- and obstruction free corridors ("accessible zones") along the building lines (i.e. in the areas where footpaths would normally be located), to provide a safe route in the shared spaces being introduced.
The November 2007 issue of the Fietsersbond (Dutch Cyclists Union) newsletter criticises shared space schemes as encouraging the bullying of cyclists by motorists, giving examples of people who feel less safe as a result. The Dutch Fiets Beraad has also demonstrated some ambivalence over shared space schemes, describing some benefits but also some drawbacks for the less assertive cyclist. Fiets Beraad has noted that shared space has decreased car speeds but that "[p]art of the cyclists does not dare demand the right of way. They dismount and wait for the right of way to be clearly given. Then they walk or ride to the other side. A problem may be that halfway across cyclists are met by cars from the other direction having to be kind enough to yield informally. Due to low speeds and the defensive behaviour of these cyclists this crossing strategy need not be unsafe by itself, but it most certainly is not convenient."
Monderman has stated that these objections are more a matter of communication than design, stressing the importance of consulting such people during the design
stage.
European "Shared Space" project
The Shared Space project is sponsored by the European CommissionEuropean Commission
The European Commission is the executive body of the European Union. The body is responsible for proposing legislation, implementing decisions, upholding the Union's treaties and the general day-to-day running of the Union....
to develop methods and policies for tackling road safety, community severance and congestion issues, and for enhancing economic vitality in streets and public spaces.
By country
Numerous towns and cities around the world have implemented schemes with elements based on the shared space principles.Australia
Bendigo, VictoriaBendigo, Victoria
Bendigo is a major regional city in the state of Victoria, Australia, located very close to the geographical centre of the state and approximately north west of the state capital Melbourne. It is the second largest inland city and fourth most populous city in the state. The estimated urban...
, plans (as of October 2007) to implement shared space in its city centre.
Germany
BohmteBohmte
Bohmte is a municipality in the district of Osnabrück, in Lower Saxony, Germany. It is situated on the river Hunte, approx. 20 km northeast of Osnabrück...
introduced a shared space road system in September 2007. One of project's goals was to improve road safety in the town.
Netherlands
MakkingaMakkinga
Makkinga is a village in the Dutch municipality of Ooststellingwerf in the province of Friesland. As of the census of 1 January 2006 it had 1,039 inhabitants. At one time Makkinga was the largest village in Ooststellingwerf, with nearly 1,900 residents...
, a town in the Netherlands, has no road markings and no signs giving an order or direction signs visible in the streets. There is a traffic sign at the entrance to the town which reads "Verkeersbordvrij", meaning "free of traffic signs". Parking meters and stopping restrictions are also absent. Drachten
Drachten
Drachten is a Dutch town, located in the municipality of Smallingerland in the province of Friesland.-Beginnings:Drachten began as a small community on the east side of the Drait River. There, early settlers started draining the land to use it for agriculture...
is another pioneer town for such schemes. Accident figures at one junction where traffic lights were removed have dropped from thirty-six in the four years prior to the introduction of the scheme to two in the two years following it. Only three of the original fifteen sets of traffic lights remain. Tailbacks (traffic jams) are now almost unheard of at the town's main junction, which handles about 22,000 cars a day.
See also 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...
New Zealand
Several of Auckland's streets are currently being turned into shared spaces. These include Elliot and Darby Streets, Lorne street, the Fort street areas, all near Queen Street, AucklandQueen Street, Auckland
Queen Street is the major commercial thoroughfare in the Auckland CBD, Auckland, New Zealand's main population centre. It starts at Queens Wharf on the Auckland waterfront, adjacent to the Britomart Transport Centre and the Downtown Ferry Terminal, and runs uphill for almost three kilometres in a...
and Federal Street by the Skytower. However, Auckland's first shared space is Wairepo Swamp Walk, completed mid 2010. Wairepo Swamp Walk is one of a number of transport infrastructure projects improving transport services around Eden Park
Eden Park
Eden Park is the biggest stadium in Auckland, New Zealand. It is used primarily for rugby union in winter and cricket in summer . The ground also occasionally hostts rugby league matches. To accommodate all three sports, the cricket pitch is removable...
as part of the 2011 World Cup
2011 Rugby World Cup
The 2011 Rugby World Cup was the seventh Rugby World Cup, a quadrennial international rugby union competition inaugurated in 1987. The International Rugby Board selected New Zealand as the host country in preference to Japan and South Africa at a meeting in Dublin on 17 November 2005...
.
Sweden
Since the zebra crossingZebra crossing
A zebra crossing is a type of pedestrian crossing used in many places around the world. Its distinguishing feature is alternating dark and light stripes on the road surface, from which it derives its name. A zebra crossing typically gives extra rights of way to pedestrians.The use of zebra...
s and traffic signs were replaced with a spacious fountain, benches and other street furniture, the Skvallertorget square in Norrköping
Norrköping
Norrköping is a city in the province of Östergötland in eastern Sweden and the seat of Norrköping Municipality, Östergötland County. The city has a population of 87,247 inhabitants in 2010, out of a municipal total of 130,050, making it Sweden's tenth largest city and eighth largest...
has experienced no accidents, mean traffic speeds have dropped from 21 to 16 km/h (13 to 10 mph) and liveability has increased.
United Kingdom
In Seven DialsSeven Dials
Seven Dials is a small but well-known road junction in the West End of London in Covent Garden where seven streets converge. At the centre of the roughly-circular space is a pillar bearing six sundials, a result of the pillar being commissioned before a late stage alteration of the plans from an...
, London the road surface has been re-laid to remove the distinction between the roadway and the footway and kerbs
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:...
have been lowered to encourage people to wander across the street. A scheme implemented in London's Kensington High Street
Kensington High Street
Kensington High Street is the main shopping street in Kensington, west London. The area is identified in the London Plan as one of 35 major centres in Greater London....
, dubbed naked streets in the press reflecting the removal of markings, signage and pedestrian barriers has yielded significant and sustained reductions in injuries to pedestrians. It is reported that, based on two years of 'before and after' monitoring, casualties fell from 71 in the period before the street was remodelled to 40 afterwards a drop of 43%.
Brighton City Council transformed the whole of New Road, adjacent to the Royal Pavilion, into a fully shared space designed by Landscape Projects and Gehl Architects, with no delineation of the carriageway except for subtle changes in materials. The route for vehicles along New Road is only suggested through the location of street furniture, such as public seating and street lights. The re-opening of the street has led to a 93% reduction in motor vehicle trips (12,000 fewer per day) and lower speeds (to around 10 MPH), alongside an increase in cyclist and pedestrian usage (93% and 162%, respectively).
In spring 2008, shared space was introduced in Ashford, Kent. The award-winning scheme, delivered by lead designers Whitelaw Turkington Landscape Architects, replaced a section of Ashford’s former four lane ring road with two-way streets on which drivers, cyclists and pedestrians have equal priority. Unnecessary street furniture, road markings and traffic lights have been removed and the speed limit cut to 20 mph.
The scheme has vastly improved safety records since it opened. Between November 2008 and January 2011, there have been four road casualties there, resulting from the six reported accidents.
Following the success of the Ashford scheme, other UK local councils are planning to use the same approach; these include Southend-on-Sea, Staines, Newcastle-under-Lyme, Hereford and Edinburgh.
Another proposed scheme in London is the redevelopment of Exhibition Road
Exhibition Road
Exhibition Road is a street in South Kensington, London, forming a semi-border between the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea and the City of Westminster...
which is home to a number of world-class institutions. The local authority say they want the area to be a comfortable and attractive place in which to live, work and visit. They plan to use shared space principles to integrate vehicle and foot traffic, whilst preserving the road's important function as a vital transport link serving people from the whole surrounding area. There have also been trials in Ipswich
Ipswich
Ipswich is a large town and a non-metropolitan district. It is the county town of Suffolk, England. Ipswich is located on the estuary of the River Orwell...
, with shared space being a key feature of the design of the new Ravenswood
Ravenswood, Ipswich
Ravenswood is a district within Ipswich, Suffolk, UK. It is sited on the old Ipswich Airport to the south-east of the town.The area is one experiencing rapid growth in housing numbers from private housing developers...
community being built on the site of the former Ipswich Airport
Ipswich Airport
Ipswich Airport is a former airfield on the outskirts of Ipswich, Suffolk England.-History:The site of Ravens Wood was purchased by the Ipswich Corporation in 1929 with the intention of creating a municipal airport for Ipswich, with construction starting in the following year. The airport was...
.
United States
In West Palm Beach, FloridaWest Palm Beach, Florida
West Palm Beach, is a city located on the Atlantic coast in southeastern Florida and is the most populous city in and county seat of Palm Beach County, the third most populous county in Florida with a 2010 population of 1,320,134. The city is also the oldest incorporated municipality in South Florida...
planners are reported to have removed traffic signals and road markings and brought pedestrians into much closer contact with cars. The result has been slower traffic, fewer accidents, and shorter trip times.
See also
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