Zaha Hadid Architects has revealed a proposal for the pedestrianization of their home city, London, that would gradually transform the city into an interconnected system of walkable roads.
Named Walkable London, the research proposal has identified the arteries and areas of the city that would most benefit from pedestrianization. The transformation would be implemented over three phases: primary avenues, secondary avenues, and finally, entire districts. Notable avenues marked for alteration include Upper Street, Oxford Street and Regent Street.
“All over the world, we are observing the trend towards pedestrianising whole districts rather than individual streets. Zaha Hadid Architects proposes ‘Walkable London’, a full-scale network of pedestrian routes which will create corridors of activation across the capital,” explain the architects on the Walkable London website.
“Transforming just a few streets will hardly make a big difference in terms of congestion, pollution, safety, public health, economic benefits and social capital. To make walking part of a daily routine, we need a full pedestrian network as an integral part of the city’s transport infrastructure.”
Videos from the site break down the proposal into three categories: proposed pedestrian network, city data analytics and alternative housing design strategies. Check them out below. Descriptions via Walkable London.
Proposed Pedestrian Network
City Data Analytics
Urban data produced via digital devices presents an opportunity to discover new insights. Through intelligent processing and intuitive visualization of unstructured records, urban data is made comprehensible to urban planners and city managers.
Pedestrianising the city is not only about walkability; it is also about the local and city-wide socio-economic structure. We are presenting the first stage of the analysis — a London-wide study of the interconnections between pedestrianisation and socio-economic trends, with a focus on the areas where the Walkable London concepts are introduced.
Alternative Housing Design Strategies
The proposal presents current housing models and develops alternative housing strategies for implementation to promote health, well being, and walkability. In collaboration with like minded innovators in real estate and property management we develop alternative futures for housing. The objective of the initiative is to optimise land use patterns and unlock land assets from scenarios deemed overly constrained for development and occupation. The proposal posits that housing shortages and demand near areas of population work density can be addressed via innovative design and delivery methods, as well as contribute to the enrichment of amenities of place and the well-being of inhabitants.
Learn more about the proposal on the Walkable London website, here.
