| Home zones are residential areas in which the street design
is modified to encourage shared use by drivers of motor vehicles
and other road users, including pedestrians, cyclists, and children
at play; with the wider needs of residents in mind. The aim is to
bring people out of their homes and create a setting where they
can engage with each other and their surroundings.
Home zones are created typically in urban areas with high concentrations
of social housing and high crime rates associated with antisocial
behaviour and juvenile delinquency illustrated by frequent joyriding,
vandalism and petty theft. The underlying premise is that if people
feel safe, comfortable and, to an extent, familiar in the home zones,
they will take ownership of the area outside their houses, and the
undesirable and anti-social behavior will decrease.
In the
past, when areas have become unviable to the majority of residents
they have simply been demolished and an entirely new concept tried—at
great expense to the government and expense and disruption to the
affected community. The concept of the home zone is being promoted
by the Central Governments Department for Transport (DFT) as part
of its policy for turning streets into places for people, and not
just traffic1.
General Design Approach
Many features of a typical street that foster high speeds, through
traffic and high numbers of vehicles are designed out, and changes
are made to the street layout that emphasize shared use and induce
motorists to give priority to other road users. The design of the
streets and streetscape gives priority to aesthetics and geometric
features because these are what the users will both react to and
interact with.
The residents are involved from the start to finish of the project,
and to an extent actually design their own streets and areas. The
designer’s role is to guide the residents and advise them
on what is achievable and practical to construct within their home
zone.
Figure 1: Two Views of
Existing Streets in
Wonford. |
Figure 2: Plan for Wonford Home Zone |
Wonford Home Zone
Devon County Council employed PB to serve as project manager for
the design and construction of a home zone in an area of Exeter
called Wonford (Figure 1). The particular area of Wonford where
the home zone study took place is one of the most deprived areas
in the South West of England. Funding for the scheme comes from
DFT.
The home zone design changed some of the existing streets into
cul-de-sacs to prevent joy riders and other antisocial drivers from
driving through the area at inappropriate speeds. The route for
vehicles is delineated by a 3-m (10-foot) -wide strip that meanders
through the streets. There are ample areas where vehicles can pass,
but the inter-divisibility of passing areas has been carefully designed
to restrict speeds to the aim of 10 mph to 15 mph. Parking, architectural
features such as metal pergolas, and new tree plantings, were arranged
to provide restrictions on both visibility and geometry for traffic
moving within the home zone (Figure 2).
We had examined early home zone schemes and identified what worked
well and what did not. The problem early schemes have suffered from
most was the deterioration (sometimes rapid) of the aesthetic appeal
to residents. For example:
- Bright colours used to delineate footways, parking and shared-access
surfaces had dulled rapidly due to weather and general wear.
- The materials chosen and the pattern in which they were laid
did not lend themselves to easy reinstatement when stats trenches,
etc. were later excavated, resulting in a patchwork of ugly looking
trench reinstatement that is overtly prominent due to the contrasting
colours. (Stats trenches are highways parlance for the excavations/holes
that are dug by utility companies to bury their pipes and cables
under the roads.)
To avoid these problems in Wonford, we applied the following set
of principles to all elements of the design:
- What will it look like in 10 years time?
- Is the design (of any particular element) in line with needs
and wants of the users
- Do the aesthetic elements of the design serve a purpose other
than beautification? This is to say that due to the tight budget
we needed to ensure the architect’s designs had utility
not simply art for art’s sake.
Although reinstatement will always been noticeable due to the fact
that all materials weather and fade, we have taken measures to minimize
its visual impact. Bound gravels and block paving were selected
for this project because of their durability and longevity; and
we will use predominately dark or neutral colours that look slightly
weathered. The gravels and the block paving are all sourced from
local quarries and producers so that the material for repairs or
reinstatement can be easily obtained. In addition, in partnership
with a specialist contractor, we laid trial areas of the materials
considered at Devon County Councils Park and Ride sites, where traffic
volumes are much greater than those on the residential roads of
the home zone. At the time of writing, the project was expected
to be awarded to a contract to construct in August, 2004.
Track Record of Home Zones
In the short time that other home zones have been in existence,
they have been extremely successful in slowing traffic, partly because
the users have been involved in the design and have bought into
the projects. Recorded crime and antisocial behavior have both decreased
to differing degrees dependant on the location and design. The main
benefits have been community ownership of the schemes and the fact
that residents perceive the streets as being safer, more desirable
places to live near. The community involvement has been very successful
in most cases, and as an indirect result has brought people together
who otherwise would not have communicated. There is also some fairly
contentious, and in my view premature, evidence that house prices
have been enhanced. |
