New Research Strengthens Link between Walkable Neighborhoods and Civic Involvement

Posted by: Megan MacIver Categories: Blog, Building Communities through Transportation, Transportation

"As the The Smart Growth Network points out, a new report by the University of New Hampshire found that “people who live in walkable communities are more civically involved and have greater levels of trust than those who live in less-walkable neighborhoods. This increase in so-called ‘social capital’ is associated with higher quality of life…”  The entire report is available for download through the Springer’s Journal website.

Insights from this study relate to Donald Appleyard‘s findings in his seminal book “Livable Streets.” Recently, Streetsblog explored three studies in Appleyard’s book that measured, for the first time, the effect of traffic on our social interactions and how we perceive our homes and neighborhoods.

A pedestrian-friendly district in Curitiba, Brazil

We can reinvent our towns and cities to be more livable places.  None of this is ‘rocket science”-we have a context of countless traditions and innovations that can create a foundation for a better future.  PPS’ Building Community through Transportation program is helping bring about a transformation that sets transportation solutions within the context of achieving community outcomes and sustainable development. PPS helps agencies and communities come together around solutions that communities want, including more livable and walkable communities.

What do you think of the report’s findings?"

Fonte e imagem:
http://www.pps.org/blog/new-research-strengthens-link-between-walkable-neighborhoods-and-civic-involvement/

Revisiting Donald Appleyard’s Livable Streets

Revisiting Donald Appleyard's Livable Streets from Streetfilms on Vimeo.

You may have wondered, while watching a Streetfilm or reading a post on Streetsblog, where we got the term "livable streets."

by Elizabeth Press on November 1, 2010 |

"The answer can be found in the work of Donald Appleyard, a scholar who studied the neighborhood environment and the ways planning and design can make life better for city residents. In 1981, Appleyard published "Livable Streets" based on his research into how people experience streets with different traffic volumes.  The Second Edition of Livable Streets will be published by Routledge Press in 2011.

Today we're revisiting Appleyard's work in the second installment of our series, "Fixing the Great Mistake." This video explores three studies in "Livable Streets" that measured, for the first time, the effect of traffic on our social interactions and how we perceive our own homes and neighborhoods.

"Fixing the Great Mistake" is a new Streetfilms series that examines what went wrong in the early part of the 20th Century, when our cities began catering to the automobile, and how those decisions continue to affect our lives today."

Fonte e vídeo:

http://www.streetfilms.org/revisiting-donald-appleyards-livable-streets/