Maximise the potential of public space

Public space is a vital element in creating a sense of place in creating links between places. It can be used to help mitigate climate change by encouraging lower carbon forms of movement.

This in turn improves health and the vitality of our places. Public space can also cater for recreation, social meetings and wildlife in a way that improves the quality of city life.

Well-designed and managed public spaces increase the numbers of people walking and cycling. The relationship between the two is in some ways reciprocal. People walking and cycling are good for our public spaces - and our public spaces need to be good for walking and cycling to increase. With journeys on foot dropping from a third to a quarter in the UK over the last thirty years, there is always scope for improvement.

Evidence that improved spaces lead to an increase in walking is growing. Research has found that a high density of destinations, continuous and accessible walking routes, well adapted crossings and other signage and easily navigable topography have been found to promote walking and cycling. In Portland, studies have shown that the amount of walking correlated with the best walking environments (according to factors such as ease of street crossing and street connectivity) having three times as many people walking than the least good.