Archive for February 11th, 2008
Kids or cars? Big questions from a big city mayor
February 11, 2008Enrique Penalosa spoke here in Brisbane last week and opened my eyes to new ways of seeing cities.
Mayor of Bogotá, Columbia, for three years until 2001, Penalosa made major improvements in the city’s transportation system, put in 300 kilometres (more than 180 miles) of bicycle and walking trails, and left behind a network of 1,200 parks and public spaces.
What are cities for, he asked a packed auditorium at Griffith University, cars or children?
A highway through a city is like a fence in a pasture, he said, separating people from each other. Highways also give special privileges to some people (car owners) and not others.
And, “A city is a collective work of art.”
His fundamental beliefs include at least these two: human beings should come first (“humans are sacred”) and democracy depends on providing both equality before the law and the chance for the poor to move as freely outdoors as the wealthy usually can.
Sidewalks, bike paths, parks, other open public spaces, and mass transportation can further democracy and make cities great. When precedence is given to cars and highways, democracy suffers and cities fall short of their potential.
“Every great city has at least one great public space where even rich people Read the rest of this entry »