INTRODUCING SPECTACULAR MONUMENTS AS CITY IMPROVEMENT STRATEGY

INTRODUCING SPECTACULAR MONUMENTS AS CITY IMPROVEMENT STRATEGY

Or-IMPROVING PUBLIC SPACES AS CITY IMPROVEMENT STRATEGY

BARCELONA LYON

COPENHAGEN MELBOURNE

-ONE STONE -FIVE BIRDS

- Lively City - Attractive City - Safe City - Sustainable City - Healthy City

JAN GEHL, PROFESSOR, DR. LITT. FOUNDING PARTNER: GEHL ARCHITECTS

URBAN QUALITY CONSULTANTS, COPENHAGEN

CITIES FOR PEOPLE

”Life Between Buildings” 1st edition 1971 Published in many versions 15 languages

”New City Spaces” - 2001

”Public Spaces Public Life - 1996

”New City Life” -2006

4decades

of research

1900

mid 1950´s

2000

Perth, West Australia Elsinore, Denmark

Carinvasion

All Cities have Traffic Departments and perfect

statistics concerning traffic and parking

*

The cars are very visible and everpresent in the planning

proces

Do you know of any Citydepartment for pedestrians and public life?

Hardly any City have statistics and data concerning the people who use the city

*

The people in the City tends to be very invisible and poorly represented in the

planning proces

CopenhagenLondonEdinburghOslo

PerthAdelaideCape Town

SeattleSan Fransisco

Wellington Auckland Christchurch

AmmanMuscat

StockholmRigaRotterdamZürich

Major City Improvement Projects:

New York

Brisbane Sydney Melbourne

Reykjavik

xx

Comming ProjectsCurrent ProjectsPrevious Projects

GEHL-Architects, Urban Quality Consultants, D

Mexico City

Gehl & GemzoeNUEVOS ESPACIOS URBANOS

Public Space as Meeting Place

Public Space as Market Place

Public Space as Connection Space

The traditional city......forever

The invaded city....from 1950s

Saturday morning, Westport, Ireland

Wednesday afternoon, Dubai

The abandoned city..from 1970s

”Houston ”Houston --the City with the the City with the fattest people of the World”fattest people of the World”

Or ............ Or ............ --Running for your Life Running for your Life --every Lunchtime!every Lunchtime!

A fully mecanized world!A fully mecanized world!

The reconquered city...from 1980s

9 Reconqured Cities• Barcelona• Lyon• Strasbourg• Freiburg• Copenhagen• Portland• Curitiba• Bogota• Melbourne

Willingnes to place constraints to the vehicular traffic

Reconqured Cities Keywords

London – Congestion Charge 2003

Careful planning for Walking and Public Life

Reconqured Cities Keywords:

GEHL ARCHITECTS -Urban Quality Consultants

Wanted:

- Lively City - Attractive City - Safe City - Sustainable City - Healthy City

Lively City

Attractive City

Safe city

Sustainable City

A good Public Realm is a crucial factor for good Public Transportation

”Houston -the City with the fattest people of the World”

Healthy City

9 Reconqured Cities• Barcelona• Lyon• Strasbourg• Freiburg• Copenhagen• Portland• Curitiba• Bogota• Melbourne

INVITATIONS INVITATIONS

TO TO

THE CITYTHE CITY

More Roads = More Traffic

Taking down Freeways, San Fransisco, USA

Seoul, Korea

after

before

London – Congestion Charge 2003

Congestion charge area-24 square kilometers

The Carinvasion gets worser every day, until someone puts their foot down and

decides to do something about it.

Bogota, Colombia - 6 mio. Inh.

Copenhagen Street: 2 Sidewalks, 2 proper bicycle lanes, street trees, 2 lanes for 2 way traffic

.....and a substantial median to facilitate crossing the street

Copenhagen-City of Bicycling

-on a citywide network of bicycle lanesBicycling in Copenhagen

-an efficient, citywide transportation system

Bicycles are taken straight through the street crossings and the lanes are marked in blue

Bicycle signals turn green six seconds before the car signals

- sidewalks and bicycle lanes are taken across sidestreets, making the city more comfortable and people friendly!

Regional Trains welcoming bicycles

New Metro - please bring your bike Are lifts provided? Yes, of course!

Everybody bikes

Copenhagen Bicycle Account 1998

The Danish Crown Prince is doing it too

Two guys on the road towards the thronePrinces Frederik and Christian on their way to the day care

50% Australian kid !

Even Australians can learn to bicycle if they start early!

Bicycling has doubled in 10 years

Inner city morning peak

Going to work in the City of Copenhagen

36% use bicycle27% drive car33% use public transit5% walk

70% continue to bike in the winter

Slide 115

Major complaint 2002: Congestion -on the bicycle lanes!

Official City Poster September 2007

Copenhagen The No 1 Bicycle in the World

Goals for 2015:

50% of all comuting on bicycles

Bicycle Accidents to be halved”

Champs-Èlysèes, Paris Before 1992

Better quality public spaces =

more pedestrians and more public life

After 1992

before after

Copenhagen From traffic place to people place

Strøget (main street) pedestrianized 1962

In 1962 all 18 squares were parking lots

- now they are all people squares

Before ….and after: A Pedestrian Priority Street

A gradual reduction of Parking

2-3% pr. year

The development of pedestrian areas in the city from 1962…….7 times more People Space!

Public Space-Public Life Surweys: Copenhagen 1968, 1985, 1995 (+2005)

Many more People are walking in the city

4 times more people spend time in the city

In only 40 years the good season has been extended from 2 to 10 months

1950 1965 20001900

Mainstreet Copenhagen in 100 years From nessesary to optional activities

Nessessity Transport Shopping Enjoyment

Will occur regardless of the quality provided

Will occur only if good quality is provided

1900 to 2000: 1900 to 2000: From necessary to optional activities in the Public SpacesFrom necessary to optional activities in the Public Spaces

Melbourne, - 3 mio. Inh.

“The Age” 1980

Places for People Places for People Melbourne 2004Melbourne 2004

Places for People Places for People Melbourne 1994Melbourne 1994

1993 - 2004 From 1.000 to 10.000 residents in the city center

Carefully designed street furniture throughout the City

“The City as a Gallery for contemporary Art”

Light as Art

variety versus

consistency

1992 2005

1992 2005

1992 2005

Greening of the City: 500 new trees pr. year

Pedestrian traffic weekdays daytime: +40%

Pedestrian traffic evening: +100 %

Stationary activities +200-300%

MELBOURNE City Center 1994-2004

Melburne -looks like any city in the new World

-but when it comes to street life and ambience it has by now a distinct touch of -say- Paris

RetailRetail

ResidentialResidential

Office VacanciesOffice Vacancies

EmploymentEmployment

Bars and PubsBars and Pubs

Copenhagen Melbourne oct 07

A CITY GOOD AT PARTIES, OLYMPICS and SUMMITS….

….. BUT NOT SO GLORIOUS FOR THE EVERYDAY LIFE

Main Street Sydney: George Street

Copenhagen Style Bicycle Lanes

(on Copenhagen Corner) Sydney, Oct.2008

Mexico City

NYC Dept. of Transp. w/ Gehl Architects,

Published: 13 nov 2008

9th Ave. Apr.08

9th Ave. Sep.08

9th Ave. Sept.08

Madison Square Nov. 2008Madison Square Nov. 2008

Broadway Boulevard Broadway Boulevard Oct.2008Oct.2008

Valencia

9+1 Reconquered Cities ?

BarcelonaLyonStrasbourgFreiburgCopenhagenPortlandBogotaCordobaMelbourne

WELCOME TO THE 21st CENTURY

HUMANIZING PUBLIC SPACES