Experimental home zones – residential streets where traffic takes second place to people – have improved road safety, created safer places for children to play and helped to strengthen communities. But Government-funded plans to expand the number of zones in Britain next year must ensure that local residents are closely involved in decisions from the outset, according to a new planning and design guide.
The handbook, published by the Joseph Rowntree Foundation, draws on the experience of well-established home zones on the continent as well as 14 pilot projects in England, Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales. It shows how existing streets as well as new developments can be designed to allow enough space for motor vehicles, but ensure that driving speeds are reduced and priority given to pedestrians and the living environment.
Mike Biddulph, a lecturer in Urban Design at Cardiff University who compiled the guide in association with the Children’s Play Council, finds that home zones can promote road safety. Yet he suggests that their main achievement has been to improve the sense of community and alter the way that local people use and think about their neighbourhood. Typically, these zones have led to increased social activity, a wider range of play and other activities and a more attractive street scene.
Pilot projects were found to be progressing most successfully where the zone had been planned and designed in partnership with local people. Time spent engaging residents at the start of the project – including steps to ensure that children, disabled people and older people were involved – avoided later misunderstandings and ensured that their needs and aspirations were properly recognised. Some projects had run into difficulties where schemes had developed too quickly or where residents felt that nothing was happening on the ground. This pointed to the need for ‘small wins’ such as road closures or speed humps being introduced at an early stage to secure confidence and demonstrate progress.
The handbook identifies key design principles for home zones that are common elsewhere in Northern Europe. For example:
Mike Biddulph said: "The Government has committed £30 million to a Home Zones Challenge Fund to extend the number of zones in England next year while the Scottish Executive has pledged nearly £12 million for schemes promoting walking, cycling and safer streets. This is a good start, but it would be better still to see government supporting the home zone concept in key policy statements, long-term funding and other measures such as revisions to the Highway Code."
