CABE This Way to Better Residential Streets

8/3/2019 CABE This Way to Better Residential Streets

1/15

1

Summary

This way to better

residential streets


2/15

2

Published in 2009 by the Commission or

Architecture and the Built Environment.

Graphic design: Draught Associates.

Printed by Blackmore Ltd on Revive recycled paper.

Blackmore Ltd holds ISO14001 environmental

accreditation.

Cover image: Accordia, Cambridge

David Millington Photography.

All rights reserved. No part o this publication

maybe reproduced, stored in a retrieval system,

copied or transmitted without the prior written

consent o the publisher except that t he material

may be photocopied or non-commercial purposes

without permission rom the publisher.

CABE is the governments advisor on architecture,

urban design and public space. As a public body,

we encourage policymakers to create places that

work or people. We help local planners apply

national design policy and advise developers

and architects, persuading them to put peoples

needs rst. We show public sector clients how to

commission buildings that meet the needs o their

users. And we seek to inspire the public to demand

more rom their buildings and spaces. Advising,infuencing and inspiring, we work to create well

designed, welcoming places.

CABE Space is a specialist unit within CABE

that aims to bring excellence to the design,

management and maintenance o parks and

public space in our towns and cities.

CABE

1 Kemble Street

London WC2B 4AN

T 020 7070 6700

F 020 7070 6777

E [email protected]

www.cabe.org.uk

This document is availablein alternative ormats onrequest rom the publisher.


3/15

3

Introduction

This brieng ollows This way to better streets(2007), in which CABE Space looked at the

design o 10 streets rom town centres to ringroads and beyond. Here, we ocus on the designo residential streets in new developments.

For the past 50 years we have thought only othe car, in eect providing parking spaces andaccess routes or drivers between home and theoutside world. Things have to change we mustnot let the car dominate when a well designedstreet can help create sustainable communities,enable people to get around, promote walking andcycling, civic pride and identity, provide sae play

or children and allow the community to interact.

So improving residential streets is an imperative.The case studies that eature in this briengshow that there are big improvements still to bemade. New neighbourhoods are not connectingwell with existing towns and cities. Their design isnot suciently inclusive to oer a great place tolive or all residents. They do nonetheless includesome eatures and approaches that work well,providing useul guidance or uture developments.

The case studies in this

brieing show that there

are big improvements still

to be made in street design

DavidMillingtonPhotography


4/15

4

The case studies

Five case studies eature

in this brieng:

You can see the ull studies at :

www.cabe.org.uk/casestudies

1 Gun Whar, Plymouth2 Upton, Northampton3 Charlton Down, near Dorchester4 Crown Street, Glasgow5 Accordia, Cambridge

2 5

4

3

Case study Description Finding

Gun Whar, Plymouth Small urban redevelopment with

signicant site constraints

Even small developments can

create streets with character

Upton, Northampton A new extension or the centreo Northampton

A ear o through trachinders neighbourhoods

connecting together

Charlton Down, near Dorchester A residential development in

a rural setting

A resh approach to rural expansion

but limited by an isolated location

Crown Street, Glasgow Bringing a street network back to

replace 1960s tower blocks

Thinking big has its benets

in street design

Accordia, Cambridge An inner-suburban

high-density development

New ideas in designing streets

and layout can give a real senseo place

44

1


5/15

5

Neighbourhoods and

communities learning

rom the past

Residential design is moving away rom

the cul-de-sac but still needs to learn rom

tried and tested street types to createwell-structured neighbourhoods.

Ideas or designing new streets should come romstreets in our towns and cities which have provedsuccessul over time. There is a range o recognisablestreet types based on a variety o standard patterns,such as Georgian streets and squares, mewsand Victorian and Edwardian terraced grids.

Each type is based on some common conventions ront doors ace onto the street (oten through

a ront garden), and a back door on to a gardenwhich backs onto another back garden so privateand public space is clearly dened. Each newdevelopment became part o a wider network ostreets. This allowed our towns and cities to growin a connected way, supporting local shops andservices and giving residents greater choice.

These residential street types were successul overtime. However, they became much less commonater the Second World War when a regulatory

approach that prioritised vehicle movement came

to dominate. Since then, development has beensupported by a much smaller range o streettypes, perhaps most commonly, the cul-de-sac.

The cul-de-sac solves specic problems such asenabling the intensive development o browneldsites that have only a single point o access. However,when repeated across neighbourhoods it ails tocreate a connected network or to integrate newand existing neighbourhoods. Instead cul-de-sacscreate places that are disconnected, inward lookingand where people have car dependent liestyles.

A close look at the case studies reveals a range otypes o street and connected networks being usedto structure new residential neighbourhoods. Someuse modern interpretations o traditional types ostreet, such as the mews in Accordia leading o amain spine street, and the wide ormal Georgianstreet in Crown Street. In Charlton Down there is arange o streets and spaces including small squares,lanes and connecting walkways. In Upton, a new typeo street containing a wide swale down the centresuggests how to manage water in new developments.

StephenMcLaren

StephenMcLaren

Front doors in Charlton Down ace onto streets and

overlook small squares. This basic convention creates

spaces that are understood by residents and visitors

In Upton, a new type o street containing a wide swale

down the centre suggests how to manage water in

new developments


6/15

S

tephenMcLaren

Neighbourhoods and

communities inding

your way around

Too many neighbourhoods make it hard or

people to nd their way around, lack character

and eature spaces where ownership isambiguous. This threatens their long-term

sustainability, because they do not work well

and are not seen as attractive places to live.

Streets structured around established designconventions and combined with specic usesand designs or corner properties (oten shopsor pubs) created neighbourhoods wherepeople could nd their way around easily.

Each o the case studies has eatures that help

people nd their way around. At both CrownStreet and Accordia it is clear what is a mainstreet and what are side streets or mews ( in thecase o Accordia). In Crown Street you can seewhere you should walk, what is public space, andwhere cars are meant to park. It works well as amodern take on the citys tradition o tenementhousing. And it is on a large enough scale tocreate a clear character or the Gorbals area.

Both Charlton Down and Gun Whar show how a

development can build on its location. Charlton Downuses much o the mature planting on the site, andviews o the countryside out rom the site, to createpoints o reerence. These eatures are enclosed insmall squares and in views along streets. Gun Wharuses the huge historic walls o the dockyard to deneit on two o its sides, and makes best use o theviews down to the circus and the estuary beyond.

Accordia has been designed in sympathy with thecharacter o its suburban setting, or example in

respect to the massing o the housing on the mainroad, and its use o brick that resembles the localCambridge stock. At the same time it has a strongcharacter o its own through among other things the bold orm o the housing blocks and the careuldetailing o ront doors and garage entrances.

However, visitors would not be clear whether thelandscaped gardens between the blocks o housesare public or private spaces. Accordia is aimed atthe wealthy end o the market and the residentsmay be able to pay or these spaces to be

well maintained. However experience romelsewhere suggests that conused spaceis oten unused and prone to neglect.

Gun Whar makes best use o the views down

to the circus and the estuary beyond

Space that is

conused is oten

unused and prone

to neglect


7/15

7

Neighbourhoods and

communities designing

or a range o uses

None o the schemes support the range o

shops and services that you would expect to

nd in a traditional urban neighbourhood.

In the past, streets played a wide variety o roles.They provided access, social space, and play spacesor children who could explore the wider networko neighbourhood streets and spaces as they gotolder. They also supported commercial activity.

The increase in car ownership in the 1960splaced street design rmly in the arena o tracengineers. Their brie was to keep trac moving,reduce casualties and separate residential trac

rom through trac. Trac engineers adoptedthe practice o segregation (o pedestriansand vehicles) and standardisation o streetdesign on one main criterion vehicle fow.

It took a long time to realise the problems withthis approach. CABEs research1 has shownthat vehicle-dominated layouts continue to bethe norm. This research also highlighted that inthe eyes o the residents, such places ailed toencourage a strong sense o community, gave ew

opportunities or children to play, had inadequatespace or parking, (while cars oten dominatedthe street) and provided little opportunity towalk - within the development or beyond.

Our neighbourhoods have, as a result, becomepurely residential. Extensions to villages, townsand cities are eectively creating enclaves withoutaccess to acilities or the vibrancy to support them.

Recently there has been a signicant change inguidance or building residential streets. Manualfor Streets, launched by Department or Transportand Communities and Local Government in2007, places well-designed streets at the hearto sustainable communities. (MS, p7)

The case studies show that designers are exploringhow to create streets that accommodate a range ouses and users. One strategy is to design spaceswhere a range o things could happen.

The aim is to design inclusive streets ratherthan spaces or vehicle movement. The approachat Gun Whar shows this in a very ecient way the streets and central area support a range o

activities or most people play, sitting, socialising,getting around, parking and access to homes.The scheme works because the basic designelements work. These elements include:

the proportions o the streets and central spacethe sense o enclosurethe positioning o windows tooer views over the streetthe variety o places to socialise or playthe bespoke design o the space rather

than relying on o-the-shel equipmentthe high-quality materialsthe lack o signs dictating how you shouldor should not use specic areas.

1 CABE (2007) A sense of place; CABE (2007)Housing audit

CABEs research

has shown that

vehicle-dominated

layouts continue

to be the norm


8/15

Our neighbourhoods

have become purely

residential. Extensions

to villages, towns and

cities are delivering

enclaves without

access to acilitiesor the vibrancy to

support them

StephenMcLaren

8


9/15

9

Neighbourhoods and

communities parking

Designers rely too heavily on limited parking

solutions, especially rear parking courts,

and are ailing to design or build them wellenough. As a result residents and their

visitors are ignoring them and streets are

coming to be dominated by parked cars.

Parking eatures as a central issue in ourresearch into new residential developments2.It oten causes dissatisaction and argumentsbetween residents. Usually, residents wantplenty o parking directly under their controland within sight o their ront door.

So how have the case study sites done withtheir parking arrangements? The evidenceshows that there is not a single best solutionand that relying too much on one typeo parking can be problematic. EnglishPartnerships guide Car parking - Whatworks where (2006) provides useul advicethrough a range o case studies to show thatcar parking must respond to the location, thetypes o housing proposed and their tenure.

Other research has also shown that the mix oallocated versus unallocated parking is important to

delivering parking eciently3

. The theory here is thatunallocated parking, usually on the street, delivers thegreatest fexibility by allowing spaces to be used byvisitors and residents, who may be about at dierenttimes. This appeared to be supported by evidence inthe case studies. The Crown Street and Gun Wharschemes, with the highest levels o unallocated parking,seemed to work well. Whereas the Accordia andCharlton Down schemes, with a clear bias to allocatedparking and a lack o obvious spaces or visitors,did seem to have the most problems with parking.

The parking scheme in Errol Gardens in CrownStreet shows that to get on-street parking to workwell, the scale o the street is important. Most othe cars there are parked in the centre o the streetat right angles to the road. This means a largenumber o cars can be parked without dominatingthe street. It is clear where the parking is whenyou arrive in the street. This arrangement allowsthe spaces in the middle o urban blocks to remainpleasant private spaces rather than parking courts,which in this location might dramatically reduce

residents access to private outdoor space.

On-street parking,

particularly by visitors,

will happen even ithe design does not

accommodate it easily

StephenMcLaren

2 CABE (2007) A sense of place

3 Noble and Jenks (1996) and later work by Alan Youngof WSP Group and Phil Jones of Phil Jones Associates


10/15

10

Crown Street shows how changing

the scale o a street can allow

parking to be accommodated

Elsewhere, the problem o on-street parkingis dealt with less well, particularly in schemes

where it wasnt easy to see i the street evenprovided on-street parking, such as at CharltonDown. From the experience o this case study,on-street parking, particularly by visitors, willhappen even i the design does not accommodateit easily. Many vehicles were parked hal upon the kerb which obstructs pedestrians andpeople using wheelchairs or with pushchairs andcreates visibility problems or other drivers.

In Upton, Charlton Down and Accordia residentseel they had a lack o control over unallocated

street parking. There was a ear that, while it isfexible enough or dierent users it was also opento abuse either by residents with a lot o vehicles orby those who were seen to be breaking the rulesby not using their own parking behind or to theside o their property. The problems this causedand the disputes between neighbours have ledto each o these schemes proposing some ormo on-street permit system to control parking.

Alongside ensuring the correct mix, the individual

design and careul implementation o parkingaects whether it is well used. The rear parkingcourts in the case studies showed signicant fawsin their design and execution. In all schemes theirstatus was ambiguous even those nominallyprivate such as in Upton and Gun Whar werecompromised by gates being let open.The courts at Charlton Down and to the backo the social housing in Accordia were large andpoorly landscaped with large areas o tarmacand high ences between the space and theback gardens o properties. This ailure to allowresidents to easily see their vehicles rom theirproperties discourages their use either or parkingor or any other unction, such as or childrens play,which might compensate or the large land take.

St ephenMcLaren


11/15

11

car ownership levels are lower, which may havehelped support this range o uses. The evidencerom residents is that the various shops and servicesdraw in passers-by rom other neighbourhoods.

The case studies also show a disconnection romsurrounding neighbourhoods. This is partly due to

objections rom nearby residents or even residentsin the scheme who ear through-trac. In Uptonand Accordia this has reduced each scheme toa large cul-de-sac in terms o vehicle movement.Other schemes have been built in close proximity tolarge high speed roads. In Crown Street we oundthe orbidding nature o the urban ring road thatringes the site has limited the potential or easyconnections to surrounding neighbourhoods.

Local highway authorities set the design standardsor new developments. I these are based on theold cul-de-sac culture, new developments areorced to turn their backs on the surroundingnetwork. We need to learn lessons rom the pastwhere public transport routes were the ocus orhigh density mixed use development, supportedby lower density but connected hinterland.

Existing practice, based on the approachoutlined in Manual or Streets, aims to establishshared ideas between the various partiesinvolved in the development process. We must

ensure that this happens i we are to deliverconnected growth o our towns and cities.

Connecting

neighbourhoods

Many new neighbourhoods are disconnected

rom established urban areas because they are in

isolated locations, bounded by high speed roads,or because neighbours ear through trac.

We know that streets have to unction at dierentscales as the public space outside our homes andas the way our homes are connected to the widerworld. In this section we will look in more detail atthe connections beyond the neighbourhood.

Streets exist as parts o wider networks with newdevelopments adding to and connecting with existingstreets. Such networks oer residents opportunities or

shopping and working locally or urther away. However,the cul-de-sac culture eectively cut easy linksbetween neighbourhoods. One o the biggest recentchanges in street design has been the attempt to getstreets working as part o a connected network. Thisis beginning to happen within neighbourhoods. Thechallenge now is to connect beyond the neighbourhood.

One o the notable actors behind lie on pre-war streets was the variety o uses within streetnetworks corner pubs, shops, service businesses,

community halls and small industrial premises werecommon. Their closeness to each other meantmore people walked through the neighbourhoodand used the local shops and services.

Looking at the case studies there has been little inthe way o local service provision that residents canaccess on oot. This is particularly true in developmentson the edge o towns located near to large shops andservices that rely on people using their cars. CharltonDown, even though it is three miles rom the nearesttown, has just one convenience store and a communityhall or over 500 properties. Accordia has no otheruses in the residential scheme even though it has over300 properties. The original design included ocespace in the scheme but the site was sold to anotherdeveloper and design changes led to the oce spacebeing built with separate access and a ence cuttingo any links with the main residential scheme.

Only Crown Street has been able to deliver arange o uses, with a small supermarket, a verypopular library and several smaller shops, including

caes, butchers, newsagents and chemists. Thescheme was led by a regeneration company ratherthan a private developer. It is also in a more urbanneighbourhood than any o the other schemes, where

Step

henMcLaren

A ear o through trac by neighbouring

residents has resulted in these crude barriers

that prevent ull movement between Upton

and nearby estates


12/15

12

Inclusive design or

residential streets is about

getting the basics right

clear accessible streets

that support walking

and encouraging social

interaction between thewhole community

Ste

phenMcLaren

12


13/15

13

Inclusive design

Design teams have not consulted widely with the

community and a lack o monitoring and evaluation

during construction and ater completion hasallowed design faws and barriers to appear.

None o the case study streets, all o which weredesigned beore the Disability Discrimination Act2005 came into eect, shows as much concernor inclusive design as we would expect today. Nor,except or Crown Street, did there seem to have beenany signicant consultation with disabled people,local access ocers or their advocates during theplanning stages. Today, we all have an obligation todeliver inclusive design. Going orward, developers,

designers and local authorities will need to developthe skills to consult and eectively represent the needso a wide range o users. These discussions need toaddress both specic practical needs as well as howto create places that make all users eel welcome.

Inclusive design or residential streets is aboutgetting the basics right - clear, accessible streetsthat support walking and encourage socialinteraction between the whole community so thateveryone can move about and enjoy the space as

they want. For example, the long, straight streetsat Accordia provide good sight lines or users andhelp people moving about to estimate distances.

Crown Street shows the benet o involving people withdisabilities. They have been represented on the variouscommittees involved in developing Crown Street and theoverall design outcome has been commendably inclusive.Using central parking means vehicles are kept well awayrom the pavements, which are wide and comortable orpedestrians to use and suitable or people with a rangeo mobility needs. The pavings colour, tone and textureworks well together or people with visual impairments.

Although there wasnt signicant involvement withthe Gun Whar development, the design outcomeshows some real inspirational inclusive design. Thepublic space at Gun Whar in Plymouth is a greatexample. It provides a level area in the centre o thesloping site with access by steps with handrails, andwell-designed slopes lead to level spaces. Popular asa childrens play area, it is much more versatile thantraditional grassed spaces. There is a clear contrast

between the white seating and the grass borders to helppartially sighted people. Also there is plenty o spaceor seating, and wheelchairs and childrens buggiescan be placed on the level areas next to the seating.

Alongside getting people with disabilities involvedin the design process there needs to be attention

to detail during construction. This will help avoidproblems with design eatures such as a poorlyplaced bollard, and railing or handrails built at thewrong height. Unortunately, each o the case studiesshowed these problems. For example, there is nodisabled parking near the shop in Charlton Down andsome blister paving in Accordia is poorly positioned.These problems could have been corrected i the buildhad been monitored and audited when nished.

It is too early ater the passage o the legislationto see how those involved in designing residential

streets will respond to the Disability DiscriminationAct. Designers must consult and engage a widerrepresentation o the community in the designprocess, including access groups and local accessocers. These groups themselves will also need to beavailable to be involved in assessing schemes rom thebeginning. This may mean in design discussions withdevelopers and also audits ater completion to makesure design eatures are put into practice successully.

StephenMcLaren

Crown Streets easily understood

layout and wide pavements

encourage walking to local

shops and services


14/15

Recommendations

The ve case studies have pointed theway towards a new era in residential street

design where people rather than cars areprioritised. Connecting beyond the sitehas proved universally dicult. Yet webelieve these schemes are moving in theright direction as attractive and unctionalplaces to live. In order to improve the designo uture residential neighbourhoods wemake the ollowing recommendations:

1 2

4

6

3

5

7 8

14

Think strategically about

growth, avoid isolated

sites, and connect new and

existing neighbourhoods.

Rediscover the public transport-

led model o suburban

development. Focus higher

densities and mixed uses at new

suburban centres connected by

viable public transport links.

Ensure space is clearly public

or private a space whoseownership is ambiguous is likely

to be under-used and become a

maintenance burden.

Avoid compromising on

materials and quality at the

construction stage. This isalso oten known as value

engineering.

Create a logical structure o

neighbourhood streets andspaces, to aid navigation or all

and to encourage walking

and cycling.

Use a range o

parking solutions that are

appropriate to the context.Design streets to accommodate

on-street parking.

Establish inclusive design as a

core competency within design

teams. Engage those who

represent the widest possible

range o local people early in the

design process.

Audit completed schemes.


15/15

Too many o the neighbourhoods where

people live are structured around cars.

This needs to change. This brieing

investigates residential street design

using examples rom England and

Scotland. It identiies common problems,

explains how good design helps to

connect and structure neighbourhoods

and makes recommendations or

improvement. It is aimed at planners,

urban designers and highways

proessionals. It will also be o interest

to councillors, developers and anyone

else concerned with the quality o new

residential neighbourhoods.

Design better streets

This way to better residential streets

is part o a wider CABE programmethat provides research, guidance and casestudies aimed at promoting high-qualitystreet design. For more inormation see

b g k/ t t

CABE This Way to Better Residential Streets

Documents

Transcript of CABE This Way to Better Residential Streets