Shared Space:
That’s what this project started as…… ‘Shared Space’…. is a zone where cars, buses, people, bikes, vans and skateboards even, are all equal. I was so excited and thought what a fantastic progressive thing to have on your CV. The only model I knew at the time was Ashford in Kent but subsequently Kensington in London where the Museums are
see slide show here
http://www.flickr.com//photos/73419983@N05/sets/72…
has fairly recently been transformed into a Shared Space. I know I mentioned somewhere before that the plans for this were not agreed by the Town Council, though the District Council were very keen and commissioned me to draw up designs for the streetscape. Sadly not to be and a road with pavements in the tradional is the reality.
So I had visited Ashford to have a look at this ‘Shared Space’ to see what it was like, and I didn’t think it was as scary as it sounded and every one took to it pretty easily. If you don’t know its there cos you never been to Ashford before, it seems to be introduced by art lampposts and a general feel of the place being different as the surface of the road changes. I can’t remember if speed humps introduce it or not.
Now I just spent a few days in Amsterdam where the whole city centre is a kind of ‘Shared Space’…truly amazing to see the motor car at the bottom of the pecking order…a totally pointless way getting around.
I didn’t see a speed sign,
didn’t see a roundabout
or traffic lights
or many road markings painted on the road,
didn’t see many signs at all.
I did not see a single cyclist wearing a helmet though I saw tens of thousands of cyclists.
Apparently over 500,000 bikes in the city centre with an estimated 30,000 bikes at the bottom of the canal system.
Moped drivers don’t need helmets either, though motor-bikes do.
I saw what might be described as ‘near misses’ in the UK between cyclists and pedestrians going on constantly as routine road behaviour. A near miss in Amsterdam then ….lets say about 2inches …..and six inches is plenty of room. I never saw a crash or heard an accident.
I think we need to get a grip over here, the car driver as top dog needs challenging. I know we have pedestrian shopping zones, but this is different as all users are equall. I don’t know what it is like where you live? But cyclists are still relatively rare road users. Cycling does have a slightly higher profile, but helmets, elbow pads and day glow jackets, lights flashing…….all seems rather over the top in comparison to Amsterdam. Had the shared space on my project happened I would have liked to have organised a pop up ‘Free Running’ performance in the zone to promote it…
For now then I am back to cracking rocks again.
two more birds and then its three done four mosaics to go…..not even half way yet. It’s tough to get going again, its such an emotional investment creating a large work like this. My stamina is already being well tested.
