Gregory's ServerWent to see a superblock in Barcelona. Given how much they feature as urbanism of the future, they are amazingly simple. Take an intersection, block traffic in all four directions and you have a square. Plant trees, add some tables and benches. That's basically it. Replace cars with trees and don't privatize the resulting space. All you need, and all that is usually missing, is political will.
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 And so many of the footpaths are level! (Laterally, that is; and typically with gentle sloping, in forward direction.)  Image description: In the background some multiple-storey residential blocks. Between them: Trees. In front of them: Trees. In the foreground a big open space with plants and a wide pedestrian walkway. To the side a pedestrian street in front of a multi-storey building with a street-level café and some people sitting at outdoor tables.   @mistertim Yes, there is a lot of information on the map. :) After clicking around I found this page which mentions the places you mentioned. https://ajuntament.barcelona.cat/superilles/en/content/the-new-green-hubs-and-squares  @festal we unfortunately live in a world where cities are designed for cars instead of people.  @festal the interesting thing is: this is what amlost all sqares have looked like just 100 years ago. @festal these streets were so pleasant to stroll on & even those under construction were enjoyed by people. Great to be able to walk a couple blocks without crossing a street, much quieter without traffic, there’s actually space for residents! Danke ❣️ zu #Superblocks https://de.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Superblock_(Stadtplanung) und ähnlich https://www.brandeins.de/magazine/brand-eins-wirtschaftsmagazin/2023/stadt/ein-viertel-fuer-alle Bitte schön, liebe Städteplaner da draußen, gern geschehen 😉 @festal political will because... it's absent in the market and on the ground?  @festal and the boat loads of angry drivers protesting on the streets. We’re seeing exactly this in London with the Mayor trying to extend ultra-low emission zones. Same thing when our borough closed off access to some residential streets. Boris Johnson’s seat was won by a Tory because voters want to drive their cars around without paying for the privilege. @benfulton No, no dead ends. It's called a superblock because it's like a bigger block consisting of smaller blocks. If you have a grid layout, image drawing a rectangle around a couple of blocks and grouping them together. The roads inside the superblock are usually closed to through traffic (exceptions for emergencies etc).  @festal What about parking? Underground? Years ago, on my first visit to Vail, Colorado, I was surprised to see that’s exactly how that town is laid out in at least the downtown district. Especially since this is high up in the Rocky Mountains not too far from the Eisenhower Tunnel. @festal Barcelona is weird, though. Apart from these superblocks, the amount of cars is quite horrifying. I lived and worked in Barcelona for several years and I was a Geography teacher. The polluted air gets trapped between sea and mountains, and the resulting atmosphere is a danger to human health. The expected result of the current elections in Spain will be to put climate denial into mainstream government next week. Two steps forward, fifty years back. ☠️ @festal were do you park so that you can do business in the superblock? that would be the complaint here in the u.s.  |
@festal Nice to see they've got the walkways wide enough for two people using wheelchairs to pass in opposite directions. That can be rare.