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Safe and Secure Cities for Ageing Generations:
Environmental Urban Walking Conditions in Post Covid Era
Karel Schmeidler1
, PhD. Associated Professor
1
University of Technology and Economics, VŠTE, Dpt. of Civil Engineering, Ceské
Budejovice, Southern Bohemia, Czech Republic
1 Abstract
Historically walking was the dominant transport mode in Czech cities for centuries. That is why our
cities, their size and shape were designed besides other important things like defence according needs
of pedestrians. All the amenities were situated in walking distance and public space and all the
pedestrian routes were designed to enable easy waking and social life in public realm.
This was dramatically changed during and after industrial revolution. Mass production and advent of
motorised transport changed the size and fabric of the Central European city. New transport
infrastructure and fast development of means of transport enabled unlimited urban growth and
dramatically changed the relation between locations of people’s activities within the fast developing
city structure. Unlimited growth of individual car ownership after 1989 resulted in much longer
distances, need for commuting and then in car dependency of town’s inhabitants and visitors. In
Central and Eastern Europe the changes were much faster, in two decades they reached the same level
of automobilisation and automobile related problems as their counterpart in West Europe. Because of
short time for accommodation and unprepared infrastructure, the problems seem worse. But Central
and Eastern European state and regional transport authorities did not learn much from the latest, more
environment-oriented development in the West Europe.
Unsolved problems like climate change, growing congestions and environmental pollution of our
cities call for short and long-term solutions to sustain mobility and good urban environmental quality
for their inhabitants. The visions for liveable and sustainable cities are connected with many
demanded and sometimes predicted changes like transport mode shift from motorised transport to
public transport and non-motorised transport, synergy of integrated land use and transportation
planning, transit oriented development and user friendly design and sensitive renovation of European
cities for their inhabitants and visitors
2 Keywords
Transport, mobility, accessibility, senior citizens, safety, security, walking
3 Introduction – Impact of transport on the development of Czech and Moravian
settlements and urban areas
In the 20th century motorisation based development transformed the urban landscape, in consequence
the majority of the population in EU became car-dependent. Cars give them the feeling of freedom and
security. However, in the 60’s, problems were recognised. The enormous increase of car traffic in our
towns has meant more mobility for its inhabitants and higher intensity of residential distribution of
functions (See Fig. 1). At the same time, however, it has created a series of conflicting situations in
people's everyday lives; it has disrupted their living environment, and it has disturbed the functional
purpose of towns as self-contained entities. (ROBES, M. 2002
Bad environmental conditions for inhabitants, especially pedestrians and the current unsatisfactory
state of urban public spaces have a number of causes in many European cities. One of them is the
incompatible discrepancy between historic traditionally structured urban design, and the present-day
requirements created by increased car traffic volume (KURFURST, Petr 2002). The physical
environment of towns and cities was developed for less demanding mode of traffic – in the first place
walking. Additional problems are caused by the uneven distribution of urban activities, which is
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growing at an unacceptable pace at the present time. (GEHL, Jan.: 2000) According our last
estimation, the distance to services in some Czech cities has prolonged five times since WWII.
(SCHMEIDLER K.: 2008). This distribution is strongly affected by a strict segregation of living
functions. Traffic origins and destinations have spread throughout a large area, resulting in an
enormous growth of internal urban motorised traffic and decline of walking (see Fig. 2). The current
state is also due to the application of predominantly technically oriented solutions to problems that
have shown no respect for sensitive urban planning and environmental requirements of local people.
(PATRIK, Miroslav 1997)
4 Changing Urban Structure
Essential changes in the settlement structural patterns of European countries have affected the style
and life quality of their inhabitants. This is particularly applicable to children, senior citizens, the
handicapped, and to woman who are generally of ill health, less wealthy, more vulnerable and less
mobile.
Since the 1960s, a new phenomenon has begun to occur as shown in the statistics of cities and urban
areas of Europe: the largest cities have stopped growing and marks of de-concentration have arisen. At
this time, geographers of settlements have come up with the “general theory of modern urban
development”. According to this theory (Van den BERG, L., DREWETT, R., KLAASSEN, L.H.,
ROSSI, A., VIJVERBERG, C.H.T. (1982), which is based on the assumption that the development of
cities consists of successive phases of urban development. That serves as a general model; certain
cycles are always repeated in all examples of urban development; first of all appearing in innovative
centres, and then extending to the rest of the world. This concept is in compliance with the general
theory specifying that urban process is determined by economic progress, industrialization and
transport infrastructure development, which crucially impact the optimum location of populations and
their activities. The determination of optimum location is more or less independent of the political
system or the social and economic establishment. These only constitute side and modifying factors.
The basic urbanization model is also slightly modified by the historic and national features of different
regions.
5 Spatial Development based on Proximity of Places of Activities
New technologies and new spatial development patterns altered cities into something more than mere
centres of religion and government. Settlement structure changed significantly: apart from the
development of a capital or several major elements, a number of industrial cities were formed. In the
cities themselves, residential development was centred within the walking proximity of factories and
businesses - due to underdeveloped public transport. Further along, urban growth was achieved as a
result of the development of public transport, the building of railways, the construction of water
supply and sewage networks, and the establishment of basic forms of residential development and city
formation. A typical developmental pattern or form was that of the radial-concentric city - a starshaped
urban conglomeration from which the roads extend in the shape of arms. Industrial urban
development culminated with the establishment of coherent urbanized areas. The term conurbation is
sometimes used. Even though rapidly growing conurbations and related travel demand may seem to be
the greatest problem today, this is debatable. The share of urban population in Europe has exceeded
eighty percent; which means that Europe as a whole has reached the “ceiling of urban development.”
No further development is awaited in this direction.
In early stages of pre industrial and also industrial urban development walking was widely used. In
that time people were used to walk 15 kilometres to reach their working place. Places of work, home,
cultural and religious activities and leisure were built mostly in proximity and other modes were very
expensive for majority of the population. In Central Europe and Eastern Europe in particular, this
process bears some special features that differ from the general model when compared to Western
Europe. Changes have often been delayed by several decades; and the transformation of the settlement
structure was not so aggressive – due to various political factors, and the slow pace of agricultural
production modernization. The term “suburban development” is used to describe situations in former
socialist countries. The level of infrastructure is not in balance with the amount of urban population, so
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newcomers therefore, usually settle in housing estates on the outskirts of the cities. (STANKOVA
Eva, (2008).
In communist states as Czechoslovakia was, walking was widely supported by the government,
because good physical shape of the population was important precondition for “healthy nation”, the
military defence purposes, pre-military training and military service. Walking competitions were
organised on mass basis like “One hundred kilometres walking” for adults and “fifty kilometres
walking” for children and youth. Walking path network was built extensively. From that time
Czechoslovakia and Czech Republic had one of the best marked net of walking paths in the world.
Walking was seen as important leisure activity for masses.
6 Suburban development and car dependency increase
This suburban development is the accompanying phenomenon to a new phase of the socio-economic
revolution, where the focus of economic activity is shifted from industrial production to a services
economy that has a high demand for knowledge, skill, mobility, and the supply of information. (3)
The 2nd phase changes in the settlement structure patterns are thus induced by the changes in
economy and society. This process is influenced by the attenuation of heavy industry and the departure
of workers to the tertiary sector and light industry production on assembly lines requiring single-floor
industrial halls with spacious area. Administrative and research parks with pilot operations have
thereby followed industrial parks to suburban locations which allows them to take advantage of newer,
faster roads; cheaper construction plots and ample parking space; and avoidance of the drawbacks of
the city, such as congestions, bad quality of environment, crime, growing poverty in central areas, and
other negative phenomena. Administrative parks represent cheap locations for companies that are not
established yet and need cheap start-up conditions. Due to intensity of investment and international
business development, new, mainly warehouse and commercial constructions proliferate “in the green
belt” in clusters of urban conglomeration. Shopping centres have grown almost spontaneously in
suburban locations. Outward-bound roads and motorways are surrounded by tens of kilometres of
sheet-metal auto dealerships, assembly halls, warehouses and shops. Cities are thereby chaotically
extended at the expense of traditionally agriculturally utilized countryside; which again intensifies
negative ecological pressure on agricultural production.
We are witnessing the slowing pace of a traditionally rapid urban development, typical of the first
post-war period. Extensive urban development is slowing, and increasing numbers of the population
are leaving large cities; on the other hand, living environment and infrastructure in the suburbs is
improving (shops and facilities have followed people). As a result, the number of job opportunities has
grown and the income of people living there has increased (mostly middle-age, qualified, “whitecollar”).
Tertiary aspects affecting the society in most advanced countries have led to changed housing
requirements. People who have an opportunity to obtain individual means of transport change their
places of living. The increased use of the private automobile has enabled greater groups of the
population to move quickly between home and workplace. Leaving the city is becoming more
characteristic of a wealthier population for whom satellite or villa towns, adjacent to suburban areas or
neighbouring villages, are built in proximity to larger cities. The term “social exclusiveness” is starting
to be used for the new locations experiencing the increased concentration of socially similar groups.
Newcomers usually do not integrate with the original village population because of their considerable
socio-economic differences. “Walled communities” emerge with their exclusively owned
environment.
The uncontrolled growth of cities further reinforces all unhealthy social trends regarding both power
consumption and protection of agricultural areas. Weekend trips by the city population to the country
walks will begin to resemble the movement of nations that pollute the environment with exhalations if,
however, it is at all enabled by the collapsing transport system. Under these circumstances we need
to view countryside utilization and the structure of population distribution more pragmatically because
this view highlights transport requirements. The cities suffer from the fact that in many places in
Central and Eastern Europe private automobiles have encroached upon areas traditionally and
exclusively inhabited by pedestrians. Cars have taken over roads, pavements, squares and
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embankments. The reason for this has been the desire to be able to reach any point by car, which often
equates to a feeling of freedom. The following applies here: the denser the population within the city,
the lower the requirements for transport and the greater space for free countryside, wild nature and
walking. (STANKOVA Eva, a kol. 2008)
Fig. 1: Table illustrates the fast increase of individual car use In Czech republic and decline of other
transport modes during two decades. Source RNDr. Jan Tecl, CDV, Brno, 2010
Suburban development, depicting the growth of the city at its outskirts, is closely linked to the process
of spatial specialization and segregation. It connotes the concentration of certain branches of industry
in certain parts of the city, and the concentration of certain groups of population into specific zones of
the urban structure. The specialization and segregation, for example, lead to an increased distance
between homes and places of work. Since these processes are usually not coordinated, and occur
independently of the existing transport system, distances are ever increasing, putting pressure on the
use of private cars to the disadvantage of public transport and walking. This is a gradual process in
which public transport loses its validity, and subsequently, ceases. As a result, numerous categories of
population, children, teenagers, mothers with children and senior citizens in particular, have
aggravated access to transport and their spatial mobility decreases. (SCHMEIDLER, Karel. (2008)
7 Urban De-development and decline of walking in cities
The growing role of tertiary sector (services) and present Covid pandemic contributes to the migration
of the population to smaller suburban settlements. Companies providing services also migrate to
places with cheaper land and labour costs. This trend has instigated an immense development of
distant transmission of information (faxes, mobile telephones, computers connected in networks, the
Internet, telecommunication satellites, etc.). Thanks to telecommunication technology, both company
and financial operations can be controlled from distant locations. Due to traffic congestions, inner
parts of cities are becoming less accessible to their inhabitants. This is accompanied by the
unregulated growth of cities, crises of transport systems and increased use of individual cars due to the
construction of commercial shopping centres and residential zones, and sometimes due to noncoordinated
residential building (see Tab. 1).
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Fig. 2: Table illustrates the fast increase of motorised modes of transport and decline of walking
during last hundred years. Source Jan Perner Faculty of Transportation, University of Pardubice,
Czech Republic adopted by RNDr. Jan Tecl, CDV, Brno, Czech Republic, 2010
Tab. 1: Transport performances of the passenger public and individual transport in the Czech Republic
(mill. pass-km)
Passenger transport 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008
transport performance
(mill. pass-km)*
101 352 102 921 103 636 105 984 106 940 108 607 110 617 112 801 115 181
rail 7 300 7 299 6 597 6 518 6 590 6 667 6 922 6 900 6 803
road public (bus) 9 351 10 608 9 668 9 449 8 516 8 608 9 501 9 519 9 351
air 5 865 6 399 6 895 7 096 8 815 9 736 10 233 10 477 10 749
inland waterway 8 8 17 22 22 22 18 13 17
urban public 14 889 15 138 15 170 15 540 15 427 14 935 14 313 14 353 15 881
public total* 37 412 39 451 38 346 38 624 39 370 39 967 40 987 41 261 42 801
road individual (car) 63 940 63 470 65 290 67 360 67 570 68 640 69 630 71 540 72 380
Right from the beginning of car transport development pedestrians have been paid less attention; with
the growing number of vehicles and roads for these vehicles their position is becoming even worse.
Unequal position of pedestrians is also emphasized by their significantly greater vulnerability in the
road traffic as compared to other road users (see Fig. 3).
Fig. 3: Table illustrates the increase of fatalities after societal changes in 1989 and stable portion of
vulnerable road users - pedestrians killed in the same time. Source RNDr. Jan Tecl, CDV, Brno, 2010
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To deal with the issues of traffic and parking, costly transport and parking facilities have been built.
Conditions for enabling the transport to become more intense are also being established. In
consequence we are witnessing a massive mobility of people and devastation of the environment even
beyond the borders of the affected regions. The historic centres of cities are often damaged and the
internal environment is deteriorating. It is paradoxical that the construction of freeways that connect
developing suburban locations with the central part of the city are contributing to the destruction of the
central parts of the city by enhancing the dispersion of the functions crucial for the health of urban
centres. It means that if the concentration of retail, light industrial production, recreational, cultural
and educational functions vital for urban livelihood decrease; city centres will be destroyed. The road
system supports spatial distribution of population, but also enables the shift of vital activities to new,
more distant centres. (SCHMEIDLER, K. 2009)
Another problem has been created by the ill-considered and non-regulated growth of administrative
buildings in European city centres. Where new buildings could not be built, old buildings were used. It
was bad fortune for people who lived there, senior citizens in particular. Adjacent historic squares then
automatically became parking places. We recognize such derelict places according to their negative
effect upon pedestrians (see Fig. 4). Buildings are often so close to the roads that there is no space left
for sidewalks and walking. Great distances do not enable access other than by auto, to some these
places. We are all familiar with these situations of the shopping centres at the outskirts of our cities.
Very little has been gained by this approach, and the tendency of inhabitants to leave cities is
increasing as the cities become uninhabitable; all negative aspects of civilization are often
concentrated there. This induces an increased desire of people to spend as little free time in cities as
possible; and they have more and more free time. Urban population thus leaves the city, first to places
in their immediate vicinity. Due to the extending suburban areas, however, they are forced to drive
longer distances in their objective or subjective effort to come in contact with intact nature environs,
and to spend time in untouched countryside. The increased use of private cars dramatically damages
the environment; this phenomenon has also begun to encroach upon areas that had been unaffected.
The term “urban sprawl” is used to describe this tendency. Shopping and cultural centres are also built
outside the city in the proximity of motorways because of the availability of mass customer parking
space. And this again aggravates transport conditions (congestions, combustion gases and dustiness,
incidents, traffic accidents etc.) near large cities.
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Fig. 4: Negative prognosis of the future – artist view of the future state, when no countermeasures will
be applied
In European cities senior citizens comprise a relatively big portion of inner city inhabitants. Due to
uncontrolled urban development and inappropriate urban planning policies, they have lost direct
access to the facilities they need to live (shopping, sport, leisure and medical care).(OECD, 2001)
Cities are endangered by the flight of investment from central portions, the so-called “urban sprawl”;
growing social separation arising from different income levels and social statuses, deteriorating living
environment in cities, loss of agricultural land and original rural environments, and erosion of
architectural monuments. The image of city centres is aggravating; the press refers to the “crisis of
cities”, “decline”, “pathology”, “alienation” and decreasing investments in these areas. Changed
accessibility and deteriorated quality of the environment (noise, air pollution, traffic vibration, etc.)
limits walking and sojourn in public spaces and may induce greater migration. People of a higher
economic status move out of these locations because they feel they are becoming less habitable. The
population migrates to less urbanized places which have, however, easy accessibility. Then it is
followed by services that contribute to the rapid development of new settlements, often at the expense
of the quality of the environment. Increased mobility becomes a feature of the era; it has, however,
some drawbacks. In reality, attachment to a certain place is not restricting; it enables, for example,
intensification of human relationships. Every year several hundred thousand inhabitants leave our
large cities.
The settlement network thus becomes more balanced. The city centre population is quickly declining;
the same applies to the number of job opportunities. As a result, we experience the transformation of
formerly overpopulated inner parts and transition zones. Some parts of the city lose their function or
become inhabited by groups of lower status. These groups occupy the emptied areas, and,
consequently, social problems begin to occur. In the last twenty years, the power of globalisation has
given rise to a stronger social polarization, which is mainly distinct in urban residential areas: they
experience considerable social fragmentation and segregation. Sooner or later there will be no other
option but to rehabilitate the living areas that have become redundant. In some places this process is so
far advanced that some functionless areas have been grassed over or restored.
Fig. 5: Table illustrates high vulnerability of pedestrians (children, youngsters and elderly) in some
european countries. Source: RNDr. Jan Tecl, CDV, Brno, 2010
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8 Restoration of pedestrian friendly cities
Negative tendencies in many prognoses prevail. Individual car ownership still grows in Central Europe
and building of transport infrastructure and huge transit related constructions follows. Social life is
more atomised, city inhabitants still prefer privacy at home than intensive social life in streets. Leisure
activities tend to be more passive, demanding less physical activities and movement. Physical shape of
urban people is often deteriorating, because they move much less having sedentary professions, jobs
and hobbies. Especially warning is fast deteriorating physical shape of young people as children
physicians and military physicians say. Regular walking is from the point of view of positive influence
on human body not possible to substitute. (children’s physician MD. Pavel Stejskal, Czech republic)
According his statement, the average distance made by Czech people by walking is about one or two
kilometres every day. It is much less than previous generation did. About 80 years ago people when
walking to work made about 15 kilometres distance. Low physical activity and unhealthy lifestyles
resulting in high percentage of obesity with related illnesses in young age that shrink abilities to move.
This is a vicious circle. These circumstances have been highlighted more frequently only in recent
years, when suitable solutions have been searched on the worldwide scale particularly with regard to
making especially the roads in towns safer and friendlier to pedestrians.
To stop dangerous tendencies many strategies were searched and designed. Their aim is to make cities
liveable places again, restructure important activities, use sustainable transport modes and reverse the
negative trends that endangered living conditions. According theory used they can be summed under
common description urban redevelopment.
Urban redevelopment is closely linked to the world economy: some cities have evolved into special,
positive situations and have become nodes of increased information flow and capital (which gave rise
to the term “nodal urban development”). The new expansion of some city centres may be caused by
the decline of traditional industries and the increased role of information processing and services.
Another factor is the response of large cities to suburban de-development: restoring central parts,
adopting legislative measures slowing suburban de-development, decreasing volume of transport
(microelectrotechnics) and more even distribution of job opportunities in the city structure. An effort
to make the cities attractive again is quite apparent; it is being done with the application of
permanently sustainable development procedures; prevention and restriction of social exclusiveness;
cooperation among managers, and new approaches to cooperation and mediation. Urban development
has become a tool for making cities more attractive for business, investment, tourism, and for
increasing real estate values in the highly competitive global market. This is demonstrated by a
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renewal of the formal image of the cities, for example by restoring liveable public spaces, walkable
street systems, urban avenues, embankments and squares for municipal celebrations; building new,
and restoring old parks; or building shopping streets and green areas. This brings some groups of the
population back to the cities (yuppies – young urban professional people). To make this trend
sustainable, central urban parts are renovated to become attractive for light industry, business, tourism
and walking. In newly restored inner parts of the cities, more solvent groups move to renovated
houses, thus pushing lower classes out of that housing market (gentrification). Administration offices
and businesses often replace habitable units. It is not always necessary to tear down older buildings; it
is often possible to find new uses for old warehouses, breweries or assembly halls. These buildings,
abandoned in the past by the middle class and businesses, are offered by prudent and enterprising
administrations of some cities to attract companies and international capital to re-invest in these
locations. The effort aims at the restoration of existing city centres with coherent urban regions, the
reconfiguration of rapidly growing large city suburbs to communities with positive neighbouring
relationships, and maintaining the natural environment and architectural legacy of past generations.
This process is described in different ways: revitalization; gentrification; renewal - where the
transformation is of the negative, “dead”, “poor” and “non-productive” environment into something
positive: “live”, is emphasized; and the quality of the environment and the commercial price of land is
increased in a costly manner; which results in situations where city centres adopt the apparent features
of sub-urban administrative parks.
At the beginning of this 21st century, some places in Europe are experiencing the renaissance of cities.
Urban developers, developers, local self-governments as well as citizens take great interest in the new
urban development and its approaches; this particularly applies to the regions in which damage was
incurred by an uncoordinated city growth during the last decades. Many consider the new urban
development as the approach which will bring benefit to all involved; the city growth is channelled
into such a physical form that suits the current city structure, does not increase requirements for the
use of private cars, is less demanding in terms of finances for services, and saves land and natural
resources. City centres were often considered bad and, therefore ignored and abandoned, have, after
repeated waves of suburban development, again become the centres of vibrant life. The renewed cities
have restricted individual car transport, supported and redeveloped public transport, walking and
cycling, intermodal and ecological transport and have given preference to pedestrian comfort over cars
(see Fig. 7). This was based on the fact that between 10 and 20 % of all car trips barely are walking
distance there is considerable room for reducing ecologically disadvantageous car use and replacing it
by walking. Important part of this is reduction of traffic accidents of pedestrians in cities. Pedestrians
are very vulnerable cityscape users and liveability of public space is directly linked with traffic
calming, pedestrianisation of streets and other measures protecting pedestrians. Some cities have made
substantial achievement in this field (see Fig. 6).
We can see increased investments and economic movement, which instigate the growth of job
opportunities in city pedestrianised centres. We are witnesses to the expansion of cultural facilities,
innovation of retail, growth of urban tourism, and the consequent new image of some cities or their
parts. New “urban” or “street” sports have been reinvented (for example street ball, skateboarding,
jogging, roller skating), social, conference and entertainment complexes have been built. The demand
for habitation has risen, which may result in increased population numbers. An important objective is
to maintain a certain share of residential habitation in city centres to prevent the commuter phenomena
that renders the city dead at night. Permanent inhabitants provide the feeling of occupancy,
community, warmness and life; which is mainly felt at night when the streets are enhanced by the light
from windows.
It is important that public opinion has also altered. The attitude toward cities is changing. The image
of city centres is improving; they are being mentioned in a number of articles in the press and other
mass media. Despite the burden of the heritage of the past; economic, social and cultural forces have
arisen, and have united in the name of traditional city values and urban life. Scattered house building
developments that promote ‘sub-urban sprawl’ are being criticized, and the disadvantages of suburban
lifestyles are being discussed. This controversy includes the boredom and stereotypical aspects of
suburban areas, and their negative impact on children and adolescents. There is often a saturated
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demand for habitation in suburban areas and upon their commercial facilities. On the other hand, new
job opportunities in urban locations have increased the purchasing power of urban populations.
Demographic characteristics are changing and new types of family structure and ways of living are
arising. More qualified and wealthier populations need diversity and stimulation, it searches for “the
spirit of community” and the “the identity of place”. Environmental awareness is increasing as well as
a protective approach to city values. The cities, thereby, re-attract people who wish to live and work in
social atmospheres, or visit them for tourism or cultural reasons.
The generalized findings of individual cases of successful urban re-development show that the ideal
would be to have a compact city with the sustainable multimodal mobility that protects the living
environment. Such a city would not only be able to stop the drain of people from it; but might even
increase the population. This would have positive consequences on social diversity, protection of land
resources, concentration and optimisation of urban services, possibilities for the building of intra-city
optimised transport routes, and the construction of cycling routes and pedestrian zones. The use of
high quality city public transport would increase. It has been proven that the intra-city passenger
transport by personal auto can be limited by the introduction of effective multimodal transport; and
can decrease the volume of private transport by up to 20-30%. Walking is of course advantageous
from an ecological point of view; it produces no ex¬hausts and little noise. Compact urban structures
and mobility that protects the environment will also result in a higher economic effectiveness by
making the city centres more attractive; and lower the cost of infrastructure and public transport
routes.
9 Changes that affect walking
The initial demographic assumptions are critical: Czech demographic changes in the last decade have
led transport planners, architects, urban planners, and politicians to reconsider the concept of city
space adequate to the period and the changed condition. Some user-groups continue to increase, which
impacts the architectural creativity of residential spaces. One group is fast ageing population. Every
year, Europeans spend over 500 billion Euros for transport. Losses caused by delays and incidents are
estimated at 150 milliard ECU a year. New solutions are therefore sought that would enable the
reduction of the high incident rate, traffic congestions and air pollution. The only solution for the
future will probably be a more consistent, more flexible and more effective traffic management using
intelligent traffic systems. (MOLLENKOPF, H. 2005)
This will, of course, affect the needs of inhabitants related to urban space and its conditions for
sojourn and walkability. Many older people make their journeys by walking. European policy
regarding the elderly aims at maintaining their mobility. This is a central element of their integration
in society. Senior citizens want to stay autonomous and independent as far as possible. Without the
possibility to maintain mobility, senior citizens cannot lead an independent life, with many other
problems, such as isolation and health problems as a consequence. However, pedestrian casualty rates
are much higher among people over 60 compared with younger adults, and fatalities of people aged 75
and over account for a quarter of all pedestrian fatalities (see Fig. 5). Although walking and cycling
are recommended to older people as the best way to keep fit and healthy, the safety and security
conditions are often difficult for older persons.
Results of our research confirm our statement that walking is the most important transport mode.
Many investigations point out the subjective view of elderly road users, focussing on the importance
of social relations and social behaviour in the public areas. There are plenty of suggestions and ideas
of older people concerning the improvement of public spaces, streets, walking and cycling paths and
their connections to other means of transportation.
Fig. 6: Table illustrates the achievement of respective countries according pro-pedestrian policy and
restructurisation of urban spaces. Source: RNDr. Jan Tecl, Brno, CDV, Czech Republic
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10 Recommendations How to create pedestrians friendly city
10.1 Related to Urban Planning and Design
The pedestrianisation of European historic city centres started and in Venice, at the 1st International
Making Cities Liveable Conference in 1985, walkability as one prerequisite of liveable city was
named. Nowadays, walkability is a principal concept in sustainable urban planning and design. All
over the world professionals try to design cities, neighbourhoods and places not around cars but for
people. There are three arguments that maintain the importance of walkability. The economic one says
that in a walking city inhabitants spend less money on transportation and invest more on housing and
local recreational opportunity etc. People want to be there. Human friendly urban spaces represent a
new lifestyle and allow education, commerce and tourism to develop. The environmental impact of
walkability is evident if we compare the carbon mapping of dense walking centres and suburbs.
Nevertheless, the walking environment has a great impact on society, social cohesion seems stronger,
and the city is for everyone: children, the elderly and low income people can also use it. At the same
time, walking works against inactivity which is a real factor of the American and European healthcare
and mental caused by obesity.
Walking, as pedestrian transportation became the main topic of multidisciplinary urban studies,
projects and policies. To encourage walking the built environment must be adapted to the needs of
users, of which the feeling of security is one of the most important. In every walkability measurement
the safety is present. For example, the Walkonomics rating system combines eight factors: road safety
and ease of crossing in relation to the transport, sidewalk quality, smart solution and attractiveness as a
design and maintenance question, hilliness according to accessibility, navigation by signalisation, fun
and relaxing functions, and last but not least the fear of crime is measured by crime statistics, the
presence of police, lighting and the signs of vandalism. The Walk Score, a successful company that
provides a numerical walkability index in the US, Canada and Australia for “live where you love”,
plays an important role in the real estate market. Data are available about walking, transit, biking,
travel time, public transport, car and bike sharing in the neighbourhood, points of interest and people
friendliness. However, making cities socially and physically safe is one of the most important
fundamentals of walkability, likeability, liveability and sustainability.
10.2 City for Pedestrians - General principles
§ Walking is the most elementary human movement.
§ To provide for pedestrian access to and clear routes across all parts of the city, network set up.
§ To assert comfortable routes both from the technical parameters point of view and with regard to
user friendliness of the proposed solutions
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§ To give preference to single level crossings inside the city with application of modern safety and
calming down elements. Even though single level crossings reduce automobile traffic fluency
they provide to pedestrians the needed user comfort and safety if designed correctly
§ Multilevel crossings should be designed to minimise loss drops and provide for facilities for
persons with reduced mobility and orientation
10.3 System Approach
System design of pedestrian routes
§ To provide for comfortable foot connections of all city quarters to the city centre
§ To provide for foot connections between the individual residential and other urban areas of the
city
§ To provide for foot connections to the city outskirts with facilities for rest and recreations of the
citizens
§ To provide for foot connections to the surrounding municipalities on demand
10.4 Safety
Conditions for safe pedestrian movement
§ To assert application of modern elements of traffic calming down, such as raised pedestrian
crossings, slow-down islands, elements for reduction of passage speed etc. Traffic professionals
exercise long-term efforts at introduction of modern traffic calming down and traffic safety
elements to practice
§ To provide for location of pedestrian crossings to natural pedestrian routes the most inconvenient
way from the pedestrian safety point of view is the current practice of placement of pedestrian
crossings in the crossroads off the adjacent pavement line. The pedestrians then continue along
their natural routes, cross the street off the crossing situated behind the block corner and thus the
inconveniently situated crossings do not add to pedestrian safety, rather making the situation even
worse
§ To provide for protected pedestrian crossings on access routes to schools and healthcare
institutions
§ To prefer separation of foot and cycling paths rather than to build joint pedestrian/cycling paths
10.5 Technical Standard
Conditions of technical standard of pedestrian routes
§ To provide for conditions for use of public foot areas pursuant to Decree no 369/2001 Coll., of
the Ministry for Regional Development on general technical requirements for use of buildings by
persons with restricted mobility and orientation
§ The condition of wheelchair access is one of the basic requirements for public spaces. Some
important areas in the city centres still wait for implementation of this requirement.
§ To provide for conditions for use of public buildings pursuant to Decree no 139/2001 Coll., of the
Ministry for Regional Development on general technical requirements for use of buildings by
persons with restricted mobility and orientation
§ To provide for conditions for use of city transport stops pursuant to Decree no 139/2001 Coll., of
the Ministry for Regional Development on general technical requirements for use of buildings by
persons with restricted mobility and orientation; to resolve shortening and improvement of
transfer routes in the changing nodes
§ By preventive and consequent actions to create conditions for quality of foot traffic along
pavements and other public areas not to be negatively affected by objects forming obstacles to
13
pedestrian movement. In addition to mobile obstacles, often permanently placed on the pavement,
though, there are fixed objects in the form of pillars, switchboard and fuse boxes and other
technological equipment
10.6 Pleasant Feel
Usability and aesthetic quality of pedestrian areas
§ To support development of foot traffic by emphasis on aesthetic quality of foot paths
§ To support development of foot traffic by equipment of foot paths, foot areas, squares and parks
with suitable street contents
Conveniently placed, aesthetically well designed and functional benches represent the most frequently
used street contents
§ To support development of foot traffic by equipment of foot paths and areas with greenery,
especially shading
The shadow of the trees planted along foot paths creates pleasant environment attracting people to
walks in the street
§ To develop residential function of the current urban space and parks by intense maintenance or
reconstruction of the urban areas; with the aim to increase their usability value for short-term
recreation
The development of residential function of public areas not only pleasantly enlivens the urban
environment for also favourable affects increase of intensity of foot traffic.
Fig. 7: Table illustrates the remodelation of street space in Brno for pedestrians, example of propedestrian
policy and restructuration of urban spaces. Source: Architect G. Kopacik, Brno, FA VUT,
Czech Republic
11 Conclusion
The experience with traffic control and planning the development of towns has demonstrated that
supporting walking as a transport mode and ensuring harmony between traffic and town infrastructure
presents one of the most serious problems of contemporary communal policy. This problem involves
two levels of treatment. On the social level it is a question of the social, economic and cultural
problems in the processes of town planning; it is of the possibility to control these processes, and in
this way orchestrate the restructuration, remodelling and sometimes growth of towns. Furthermore, it
14
is a question of value orientation of the society in its approach to economic development, to the
protection and creation of the living environment, and to the development of sustainable traffic modes.
At the level of operational and developmental control of the town it is then a question of selecting the
optimum sustainable multimodal traffic system, of ensuring the pedestrian and traffic safety, and of
removing or minimalizing the negative influences of traffic on the urban environment by support of
non-motorised traffic modes. This is especially possible with regard to ensuring the harmony between
the town structure and the traffic network including pedestrian pathways, and in maintaining a balance
between an organized operational exploitation, and the determination and development of an
acceptable level of urban growth in a given area.
The basic requirement for a purposeful planning process is the understanding of the multi-layered
mechanism of urban transport, pedestrians’ users’ needs and their effects on the urban structure and
urban environment. Over the last few decades, basic research has gained a better understanding of the
regularities and cause/effect relationships regarding mobility, urban development and transport. Of
particular interest are the complex, dynamic, and time lag determined connections between sustainable
traffic, land-use, urban planning, and their effect upon environment.
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