The main objective of the Action is to provide an essential contribution to systems knowledge of pedestrians’ quality needs and the requirements stemming from those needs, thus stimulating structural and functional interventions, policy making and regulation to support walking conditions throughout the EU and other involved countries.
The research aims are:
1. To improve the understanding of pedestrians’ quality needs with regard to public space, the transport system and the social, legal and political context and their interrelations, thus developing an essential tool for the stakeholders (such as decision makers, politicians, planners as well as NGOs) that can implement better conditions for walking and pedestrians’ quality of life.
2. Describe the state-of-the-art, identify an agreed set of requirements and develop a new paradigm (a coherent system of theories and models regarding adequate pedestrian facilities and qualities) that can be used by stakeholders for analysing and improving reality.
3. Provide an accessible knowledge base and easy to use auditing scheme that enables authorities and possibly interest groups to tackle, prevent and prioritise current and future problems regarding pedestrian mobility and presence in public space.
4. To stimulate partners to innovate tools and disseminate knowledge that helps in shedding new light on the issue and stimulates a new spirit in providing for safe mobility of the pedestrian.
5. To provide recommendations for further research.
European situation
The Action focuses on the current European situation and aims at providing useful information for policy development in European countries and to a lesser extent, North America, Australia and Japan. Conclusions may not be valid for other continents.
Human needs
The Action focuses on the pedestrian as a human being and his/her role in transport and traffic; the physical and social environments and the transport system should be there to support the pedestrian’s needs. Safe mobility and being unthreatened while in a public space are basic needs.
Everyday walking
A pedestrian is anyone who walks or is present in a public space. The Action will highlight everyday walking, that is ‘functional’ or utilitarian walking: walking from an origin to a destination, which can also be a vehicle or a public transport stop. Leisure walking or just staying in a public space, such as talking to neighbours, enjoying the sun are also included, but using public space for sports (jogging, marathon walking) or parades is excluded in the Action. De luxe modes that are legally pedestrian, such as skates, stepping bikes, Segways4 are also excluded. On the other hand, walking aids (e.g. a walking frame), electric scooters and wheelchairs will be included. The Action explicitly includes multimodal walking. Walking to and from other modes of transport is seen as a basic transport link.
Walking in a public space
Public space is any space that is open for all citizens and includes the road infrastructure, sidewalks/pavements and footpaths, the access (intermediary) spaces to private space, but excludes gated shopping malls, private property and the interior of buildings.
Identify basic needs
This Action focuses on identifying the minimal ergonomic, perception and durability qualities that are needed for safe mobility and a safe presence in a public space for the vast majority of pedestrians, thus defining ‘basic quality’.
Focus on prevention within the foreseeable political contexts
The Action focuses on ‘organic’ optimising of land use, the physical environment, the transport system, and the social and legal context, thus preventing problems for pedestrians within all foreseeable political contexts.
