Shared space

The origin of the term is generally linked with the work of Dutch traffic engineer Hans Monderman, who pioneered the method in the Dutch province of Friesland. Prior to the adoption of the term, street design projects carried out in Chambéry, France, by Michel Deronzier from the 1980s used the term "pedestrian priority".{{citation needed|date=March 2015}} The term was used by Tim Pharoah to describe informal street layouts with no traffic demarcation (for example "Traffic Calming Guidelines", Devon County Council, 1991).{{citation needed|date=March 2015}}

The term has been widely applied, especially by Ben Hamilton-Baillie, since the preparation of a European co-operation project in 2003. The European Shared Space project (part of the Interreg IIIB-North Sea programme) developed new policies and methods for the design of public spaces with streets between 2004 and 2008 under the leadership of Hans Monderman until his death in 2008.{{cite web |title=Shared Space |publisher=Shared Space Institute |url=http://www.sharedspace.eu/en/publications/downloads/cat_view/15-boeken-en-brochures/17-eigen-uitgaven/ |quote=Booklets published by the EU partnership. |access-date=31 October 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100131194633/http://www.sharedspace.eu/en/publications/downloads/cat_view/15-boeken-en-brochures/17-eigen-uitgaven/ |archive-date=31 January 2010 |url-status=dead}}

In 2014, a review of the evolution of the shared space concepts was offered in Transport Reviews: A Transnational Transdisciplinary Journal.{{cite journal

| title = A Review of the Evolution of Shared (Street) Space Concept in Urban Environments, Transport Reviews, 34(2), 190-220.

|journal=Transport Reviews

|volume=34

|issue=2

|pages=190–220

|last1=Karndacharuk |first1=A. |last2=Wilson |first2=D. |last3=Dunn |first3=R

|doi=10.1080/01441647.2014.893038

|year=2014

|s2cid=110111223

}}

The Chartered Institution of Highways and Transportation has identified three broad types of street design approach that have been called shared space but which have a number of important differences. They suggest that the term "shared space" should be replaced by three new labels: pedestrian prioritised streets, informal streets and enhanced streets.Creating better streets: Inclusive and accessible places. Reviewing shared space. Chartered Institution of Highways and Transportation. January 2018. http://www.ciht.org.uk/download.cfm/docid/BF28B40D-9855-46D6-B8C19E22B64AA066 {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201028202750/https://www.ciht.org.uk/download.cfm/docid/bf28b40d-9855-46d6-b8c19e22b64aa066 |date=28 October 2020 }} accessed 4 February 2018

File:Volterrani Shared Space.jpg, Italy]]

The goal of shared space is to improve the road safety and vibrancy of roads and junctions, particularly ones with high levels of pedestrian traffic, by encouraging negotiation of priority in shared areas between different road users.{{Citation |date=2011 | title = Shared space - implications of recent research for transport policy. Project Report. University of the West of England |author1=Moody, S. |author2=Melia, S. |doi=10.1680/tran.12.00047 |name-list-style=amp |access-date=22 February 2013 |url=http://eprints.uwe.ac.uk/17937/}}{{Citation |date=October 2011 | title = Local Transport Note 1/11 |publisher=The Stationery Office |author= Department for Transport, UK |url= http://nacto.org/docs/usdg/shared_space_department_transport.pdf }} Shared space is a "design approach rather than a design type characterised by standard features".{{cite web

|title = Designing the Future: Shared Space: Operational Research. Department for Transport |author=MVA Consultancy |date=October 2010 |access-date=8 March 2015 |url=https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/3886/ltn-1-11-quantitative.pdf}}

Hans Monderman suggested that an individual's behaviour in traffic is more positively affected by the built environment of the public space than by conventional traffic control devices and regulations.{{cite web |title=What is Shared Space? |author=Ben Hamilton-Baillie |url=http://www.hamilton-baillie.co.uk/_files/_publications/6-1.pdf |access-date=2008-10-16 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101214145233/http://www.hamilton-baillie.co.uk/_files/_publications/6-1.pdf |archive-date=14 December 2010}}{{cite news |title=UK traffic engineers lack skills for shared-space |author=Damian Arnold |date=2007-11-15 |publisher=New Civil Engineer |url=http://www.nce.co.uk/news/uk_traffic_engineers_lack_skills_for_sharedspace.html |access-date=2008-02-01}}{{cite web|title=Shared Space: Room for Everyone: A New Vision for Public Spaces|url=http://www.eukn.org/dsresource?objectid=146375|publisher=Shared Space (A European co-operation project)|date=June 2005}}{{dead link|date=September 2017 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }} A reason for the apparent paradox that reduced regulation leads to safer roads may be found by studying the risk compensation effect.

• "We're losing our capacity for socially responsible behaviour...The greater the number of prescriptions, the more people's sense of personal responsibility dwindles." (Der Spiegel quotes Monderman){{cite news |title=European Cities Do Away with Traffic Signs |author=Matthias Schulz |publisher=Spiegel Online |date=16 November 2006 |url=http://www.spiegel.de/international/spiegel/0,1518,448747,00.html |access-date=17 January 2007}}
• "When you don't exactly know who has right of way, you tend to seek eye contact with other road users. You automatically reduce your speed, you have contact with other people and you take greater care."{{cite web |url=http://www.dw-world.de/dw/article/0,2144,2143663,00.html |title=European Towns Remove Traffic Signs to Make Streets Safer |publisher=Deutsche Welle |date=27 August 2006 |access-date=17 January 2007}}

Such schemes are claimed to have had positive effect on road safety, traffic volume, economic vitality, and community cohesion where a user's behaviour becomes influenced and controlled by natural human interactions rather than by artificial regulation. Monderman has stated that objections are more a matter of communication than design, stressing the importance of consulting all relevant groups during the design stage.{{cite web|title=Shared Space - the alternative approach to calming traffic|author=Hamilton Baillie website|access-date=1 October 2008|url=http://www.hamilton-baillie.co.uk/_files/_publications/18-1.pdf|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121005141357/http://www.hamilton-baillie.co.uk/_files/_publications/18-1.pdf|archive-date=5 October 2012|url-status=dead}}

The UK's Department for Transport issued national guidance on shared space in 2011. However in July 2018 it reversed its position and instructed local authorities to halt all new shared space projects, with Transport Minister Nusrat Ghani stating they "just don't work" for blind and partially-sighted people.{{Cite news | url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-44971392 | title='Shared-space' road schemes put on hold| work=BBC News| date=2018-07-27}}

Reviewing the research that underpinned national policy in the UK, in 2011, Moody and Melia found that some of the claims made for shared space schemes were not justified by the evidence—particularly the claims that pedestrians are able to follow desire lines, and that shared space reduces traffic speeds. Their primary research in Ashford, Kent, suggested that in streets with high volumes of traffic, pedestrians are more likely to give way to vehicles than vice versa. Most people, but particularly women and older people, found the shared space intimidating and preferred the previous layout with conventional crossings. A study by Hammond and Musselwhite using a case study of Widemarsh Street in Hereford found that if traffic volume was relatively low and speeds of vehicles slow anyway, then vulnerable road users found it easier to share the area with vehicles, including those blind or partially sighted and older people with mobility impairments.{{cite journal |last1=Hammond |first1=V |last2=Musselwhite |first2=C B A |date=2013 |title=The attitudes, perceptions and concerns of pedestrians and vulnerable road users to shared space: a case study from the UK. |journal=Journal of Urban Design |volume=18 |number=1 |url=https://cronfa.swan.ac.uk/Record/cronfa14532 |page= H 78-97|doi=10.1080/13574809.2012.739549 |url-access=subscription }}

There are wide-ranging reservations about the practicality of the shared space philosophy where it involves the removal of features such as kerbs.{{cite web |title=Access for Blind People in Towns |url=https://www.nfbuk.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/09/SS_Access_for_Blind_People_in_Towns_1401.doc |website=NFBUK |publisher=National Federation of the Blind of the UK |access-date=21 July 2023}} In a 2006 report from the Associated Press, it was commented that traditionalists in town planning departments say the schemes rob the motorists of vital information, and reported that a spokesman for Royal National Institute of Blind People criticised the removal of familiar features such as railings, kerbs, and barriers.{{cite news |title=In Europe, less is more when it comes to road signs |agency=Associated Press |work=International Herald Tribune |date=21 November 2006 |url=http://www.iht.com/articles/ap/2006/11/21/europe/EU_GEN_Britain_Naked_Roads.php |access-date=16 October 2008}} Shared space is opposed by many organisations representing blind, partially sighted and deaf people. Some of their members avoid shared space areas entirely. Shared surfaces, which are generally used in shared space schemes, can cause concern for the blind and partially sighted who cannot visually negotiate their way with other road users, as the lack of separation implicit in these features has also removed their safe space.{{cite web |title=What's the Problem |author=Guide Dogs for the Blind Association |access-date=4 December 2010 |url=http://www.guidedogs.org.uk/sharedstreets/index.php?id=204 }}{{Dead link|date=April 2019 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }} The UK's Guide Dogs for the Blind Associations "Say No to Shared Streets" campaign has the support of more than thirty other disability organisations.{{cite news |title='Shared street' problem for blind |date=20 May 2009 |publisher=BBC |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/wales/8058604.stm |access-date=4 December 2010}} There have been similar concerns raised by other groups representing disabled people, including Leonard Cheshire Disability, the Royal National Institute for Deaf People, and Mencap, who have noted problems when negotiating a route with motor vehicle users, leading them to challenge its fundamental premise.{{cite web |title=Shared Surfaces Campaign Report - "Stop shared surfaces, keep our pavements" |author=Guide Dogs for the Blind Association |access-date=27 September 2008 |url=http://www.guidedogs.org.uk/uploads/media/Shared_Surfaces_Campaign_Report_01.pdf}} {{Dead link|date=October 2010|bot=H3llBot}} Lord Holmes' 2015 report Accidents by Design found that sixty-three per cent of respondents reported a negative experience of shared space, and thirty-five per cent said they actively avoided it. Lord Holmes attacked the concept as a recipe for "confusion, chaos and catastrophe".{{Cite web|title = Accidents by Design: The Holmes Report into Shared Space - Lord Holmes of Richmond MBE|url = http://chrisholmes.co.uk/news/accidents-by-design-the-holmes-report-into-shared-space/|website = Lord Holmes of Richmond MBE|access-date = 2015-10-17|language = en|date = July 2015}} The Holmes report also noted serious issues for wheelchair users "Respondents who used wheelchairs stated that it was virtually impossible to locate a safe crossing point on roads with shared space."{{Cite web | url=http://www.transportforall.org.uk/about/news/new-report-calls-for-a-moratorium-on-shared-space-schemes | title=New report calls for a moratorium on shared space schemes › Transport for all › Accessible Transport in London| date=9 July 2015}} In July 2018, the UK DfT reversed its position on shared spaces due to the risk to disabled people, with Transport Minister Nusrat Ghani stating "they just don't work".

The Dutch Fietsberaad (Centre of Expertise on Bicycle Policy) has demonstrated ambivalence over shared space schemes, describing some benefits but also some drawbacks for the less assertive cyclist.[http://www.fietsberaad.nl/views/voorbeeldenbank/detail_modal.cfm?lang=en§ion=voorbeeldenbank&mode=openModal&repository=Shared-space-intersection+De+Kaden Shared-space-intersection De Kaden]{{Dead link|date=January 2020 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }} Fietsberaad has noted that shared space has decreased car speeds but that "some cyclists do not dare take priority. Instead, they dismount and wait for priority to be clearly given, then walk or ride across the intersection. A problem may be that they are met halfway by cars from the other direction and must rely on the drivers to give way of their own volition. Owing to low speeds and the cyclists' defensive behaviour this crossing strategy need not be unsafe in itself, but it most certainly is not convenient."

In New Zealand, concerns about such limitations of the shared space concept have led, in cooperation with disability organisations, to the introduction of vehicle- and obstruction-free corridors ("accessible zones") along the building lines (i.e., in the areas where footpaths would normally be located), to provide a safe route in the shared spaces being introduced.{{cite web|title=Elliot Street - Accessibility|url=http://www.aucklandcity.govt.nz/council/projects/elliottdarby/designs.asp|publisher=Auckland City Council|access-date=3 February 2011|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101118062223/http://www.aucklandcity.govt.nz/council/projects/elliottdarby/designs.asp|archive-date=18 November 2010}}

The British Transport Research Laboratory found that below flows of 90 vehicles per hour adult pedestrians were prepared to mingle with traffic. When flows reached 110 vehicles per hour, they used the width between frontages as if it were a traditional road.A review of simplified streetscape schemes. Allan Quimby, James Castle. PPR 292. TRL Ltd, January 2006. http://www.tfl.gov.uk/assets/downloads/review-of-simplified-streetscape-schemes.pdf accessed 16 November 2015 A similar value is used to define suitability for a woonerf.Creating better streets: Inclusive and accessible places. Reviewing shared space. Page 12. Chartered Institution of Highways and Transportation. January 2018. http://www.ciht.org.uk/download.cfm/docid/BF28B40D-9855-46D6-B8C19E22B64AA066 {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201028202750/https://www.ciht.org.uk/download.cfm/docid/bf28b40d-9855-46d6-b8c19e22b64aa066 |date=28 October 2020 }} accessed 18 May 2018

File:Togoshi-ginza street.JPG

Numerous towns and cities around the world have implemented schemes with elements based on the shared space principles.

{{see_also|Shared Zone}}

Bendigo, Victoria, plans (as of October 2007) to implement shared space in its city centre.{{cite news|title=Walkers first on naked streets|publisher=The Sydney Morning Herald|date=18 October 2007 |url= http://www.smh.com.au/news/national/pedestrians-first-in-city-of-naked-streets/2007/10/17/1192300857642.html}} The Streets as Shared Spaces program supported 65 councils across New South Wales in developing shared spaces, since its launch in May 2020.{{cite web|title=Streets as Shared Spaces program|date=28 September 2022 |url=https://www.transport.nsw.gov.au/industry/cities-and-active-transport/cities-revitalisation-and-place/festival-of-place/grant-0|publisher=Transport for NSW|access-date=4 January 2025}}

In October 2011, Graz opened a shared space zone around a five-point intersection known as Sonnenfelsplatz next to the University of Graz with the intention of easing congestion from 4 separate city bus lines and auto, bike and pedestrian traffic as well as reducing the number of accidents. This was the first shared space concept for Austria.

{{cite news |title=Shared Space Implementation Sonnenfelsplatz in Graz, Austria |author=Heike Falk |date=September 2012 |publisher=Eltis |url=http://www.eltis.org/index.php?id=13&study_id=3504 |access-date=19 March 2014}}

Ejby introduced a shared space project in Denmark. It was part of the European Interreg IIIB project with Province of Fyslän as lead partner. The project was led by urban planner Morten Mejsen Westergaard and Bjarne Winterberg. It was supervised by Hans Monderman.{{cite news |title=Shared Space Implementation Denmark |author=Mejsenwiki |date=December 2014 |publisher=MMW |url=http://www.pps.org/reference/shared-space/ |access-date=15 December 2014}}

Bohmte introduced a shared space road system in September 2007. One of project's goals was to improve road safety in the town.{{cite news |title=Town ditches traffic lights to cut accidents |author=Catherine Bosley |date=11 September 2007 |work=Reuters |url=https://www.reuters.com/article/oddlyEnoughNews/idUSGOR14512420070911 |access-date=14 September 2007}}

{{see_also|Woonerf}}

Makkinga has no road markings and no signs giving an order or direction signs visible in the streets. There is a traffic sign at the entrance to the town that reads Verkeersbordvrij, meaning "free of traffic signs". Parking meters and stopping restrictions are also absent. Drachten is another pioneer town for such schemes. Accident figures at one junction where traffic lights were removed have dropped from thirty-six in the four years prior to the introduction of the scheme to two in the two years following it. Only three of the original fifteen sets of traffic lights remain. Tailbacks (traffic jams) are now almost unheard of at the town's main junction, which handles about 22,000 cars a day.{{cite news |title=Is this the end of the road for traffic lights? |author=David Millward|work=The Daily Telegraph|url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/1533248/Is-this-the-end-of-the-road-for-traffic-lights.html |location=London |date=4 November 2006 |access-date=15 March 2015}}

An evaluation of the Laweiplein scheme in Drachten, which replaced a set of traffic lights with an open square with a roundabout and pedestrian crossings, concluded that traffic now flows at a constant rate, at equal speeds for motor and bicycle traffic, and more freely with reduced congestion, shorter delays and improved capacity including for pedestrians. The evaluation states that there has been a reduction in recorded accidents, but cyclist and motorist perceptions of traffic safety have slightly declined. This is in accordance with theories of how shared spaces work by creating uncertainty. Meanwhile, pedestrian perceptions of traffic safety seem to have remained the same.{{Cite report |date=January 2007 |title=The Laweiplein, Evaluation of the reconstruction into a square with roundabout |url=http://www.fietsberaad.nl/library/repository/bestanden/Evaluation%20Laweiplein.pdf |publisher=Noordelijke Hogeschool Leeuwarden NHL |access-date=5 September 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150924012452/http://www.fietsberaad.nl/library/repository/bestanden/Evaluation%20Laweiplein.pdf |archive-date=24 September 2015 |url-status=dead}}

{{see_also|Shared Zone}}

File:Darby Street Shared Space Finished I.jpg, New Zealand, responded to disability groups' concerns by ensuring that a strip of "accessible zone" would be

retained in the design. This strip is made off limits to vehicles by strategically placed street furniture, while the building edge and paving strips provide guidance to vision-impaired people.]]

Several of Auckland's streets have been turned into shared spaces.{{cite web |url=http://www.aucklandcity.govt.nz/council/projects/elliottdarby/default.asp |title=Elliott Street and Darby Street upgrade |access-date=2009-08-30 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090920095921/http://www.aucklandcity.govt.nz/council/projects/elliottdarby/default.asp |archive-date=20 September 2009 |df=dmy }}[http://www.aucklandcity.govt.nz/council/projects/cbdproject/sharedspace.asp Auckland City Council] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091120020857/http://www.aucklandcity.govt.nz/council/projects/cbdproject/sharedspace.asp |date=20 November 2009 }} These include Elliot and Darby Streets,[http://www.aucklandcity.govt.nz/council/projects/elliottdarby/default.asp Auckland City Council] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090920095921/http://www.aucklandcity.govt.nz/council/projects/elliottdarby/default.asp |date=20 September 2009 }} Lorne street, the Fort street areas, all near Queen Street, Auckland and Federal Street by the Skytower. However, Auckland's first shared space is Wairepo Swamp Walk,[http://www.aucklandcity.govt.nz/news/council/201007/18/a06.asp City Scene, Auckland City Council] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110326044109/http://www.aucklandcity.govt.nz/news/council/201007/18/a06.asp |date=26 March 2011 }} completed mid-2010. Wairepo Swamp Walk is one of a number of transport infrastructure projects improving transport services around Eden Park as part of the 2011 Rugby World Cup. A research study has been undertaken by Auckland Transport in conjunction with the University of Auckland to evaluate city centre shared spaces in the Auckland CBD.{{cite web |title = Analysis of Pedestrian Performance in Shared Space Environment

|last1=Karndacharuk |first1=A. |last2=Wilson |first2=D. |last3=Dunn |first3=R |url = http://trb.metapress.com/content/c22r385wj50t3q11/

|url-status = dead |archive-url = https://archive.today/20140511060219/http://trb.metapress.com/content/c22r385wj50t3q11/

|archive-date = 11 May 2014 |df = dmy-all |date = 2017-12-14 }}{{cite journal| title = Evaluating Shared Spaces: Methodological Framework and Performance Index|journal=Road & Transport Research: A Journal of Australian and New Zealand Research and Practice |volume=22 |issue=2 |pages=52 |last1=Karndacharuk |first1=A. |last2=Wilson |first2=D. |last3=Dunn |first3=R |url=http://search.informit.com.au/documentSummary;dn=477509710448767;res=IELENG|date=June 2013

}}{{cite journal| title = Safety Performance Study of a Shared Pedestrian and Vehicle Space in New Zealand

|journal=Transportation Research Record: Journal of the Transportation Research Board| issue=2464 |last1=Karndacharuk |first1=A. |last2=Wilson |first2=D. |last3=Dunn |first3=R |url=http://trid.trb.org/view.aspx?id=1287249|date=2013-11-30

|doi=10.3141/2393-01|s2cid=111260042|url-access=subscription }}{{cite web| title = Shared space performance evaluation: Quantitative analysis of pre-implementation data| last1=Karndacharuk |first1=A. |last2=Wilson |first2=D. |last3=Tse |first3=M

|url = http://www.hardingconsultants.co.nz/ipenz2011/downloads/Karndacharuk__Aut.pdf| access-date = 8 April 2012| archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20120824195004/http://www.hardingconsultants.co.nz/ipenz2011/downloads/Karndacharuk__Aut.pdf

|archive-date = 24 August 2012| url-status = dead}}

Since the zebra crossings and traffic signs were replaced with a spacious fountain, benches, and other street furniture, the Skvallertorget square in Norrköping has experienced no accidents, mean traffic speeds have dropped from 21 to 16 km/h (13 to 10 mph) and liveability has increased.{{cite news |title = No accidents after road conversion in Norrköpping

|publisher = Shared Space |year = 2007 |url = http://www.shared-space.org/files/18445/nieuwsbriefSS.06.6.pdf |url-status = dead

|archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20080409170447/http://www.shared-space.org/files/18445/nieuwsbriefSS.06.6.pdf |archive-date = 9 April 2008 |df = dmy-all}}

The concept of a shared space where no right of way is defined for all participants is presently not legally possible. The Strassenverkehrsgesetz (SVG) requires that at least one of the participants has a right of way. As a result, the Swiss concept of Begegnungszone has become popular. However here pedestrians have right of way.{{Cite web | url=http://www.admin.ch/opc/de/classified-compilation/19580266/index.html | title=SR 741.01 Strassenverkehrsgesetz |trans-title=Road Traffic Act |lang=de}}

{{see also|Home zone}}

File:Exhibition Road, caution before crossing 20160312.jpg

File:Giles Circus shared space in Ipswich.jpg (England)]]

In London, Exhibition Road was developed into a shared space in 2012 after a design competition in 2003, a court case, and numerous community consultations.[https://www.theguardian.com/artanddesign/2012/jan/29/exhibition-road-rowan-moore-review Rowan Moore: Exhibition Road, London – review], in The Guardian, 29 January 2012

In Seven Dials, London, the road surface has been re-laid to remove the distinction between the roadway and the footway and kerbs have been lowered to encourage people to wander across the street.{{cite news

|title='Naked' Streets Are Safer, Say Tories: Traffic Lights and Signs Could Vanish Accidents Will Fall, Study Claims

|author=Ben Webster

|date=22 January 2007

|work=The Times

|url=http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/article1295120.ece

|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081014091738/http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/article1295120.ece

|url-status=dead

|archive-date=14 October 2008

| location=London

}} A scheme implemented in London's Kensington High Street, dubbed naked streets in the press{{spaced ndash}}reflecting the removal of markings, signage and pedestrian barriers{{spaced ndash}}has yielded significant and sustained reductions in injuries to pedestrians. It is reported that, based on two years of 'before and after' monitoring, casualties fell from 71 in the period before the street was remodelled to 40 afterwards{{spaced ndash}}a drop of 43%.{{cite news |title=Life on the open road |work=The Guardian |date=12 April 2006 |url=https://www.theguardian.com/society/2006/apr/12/communities.guardiansocietysupplement | location=London | first=Mark | last=Gould | access-date=23 May 2010}}

Gwynedd Council rebuilt the foreground to Caernarfon Castle. The scheme uses local slate and granite surfacing and high-quality street furniture, and a new fountain, intended to create a change in the behaviour of drivers.

Brighton City Council transformed the whole of New Road, adjacent to the Royal Pavilion, into a fully shared space designed by Landscape Projects and Gehl Architects, with no delineation of the carriageway except for subtle changes in materials. The route for vehicles along New Road is only suggested through the location of street furniture, such as public seating and street lights. The re-opening of the street has led to a 93% reduction in motor vehicle trips (12,000 fewer per day) and lower speeds (to around 10 MPH), alongside an increase in cyclist and pedestrian usage (93% and 162%, respectively).{{cite web |title=New Road City Centre Shared Space, Brighton (December 2007) |work=Scheme of the Month: January 2008 |date=December 2007 |publisher=Cycling England |url=http://www.cyclingengland.co.uk/scheme-of-the-month.php |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070702044930/http://www.cyclingengland.co.uk/scheme-of-the-month.php |archive-date=2 July 2007}}{{cite news | title = New street designs are leaving blind people with the prospect of teaching their guide dogs new tricks. |publisher = NCE magazine |date = 31 December 2007 | url = http://www.nce.co.uk/transport/features/new_street_designs_are_leaving_blind_people_with_the_prospect_of_teaching_their_guide_dogs_new_tricks.html |access-date = 25 January 2008 }}

In spring 2008, shared space was introduced in Ashford, Kent. The scheme replaced a section of Ashford's former four-lane ring road with two-way streets on which drivers, cyclists, and pedestrians have equal priority. Unnecessary street furniture, road markings and traffic lights have been removed and the speed limit cut to 20 mph.{{cite web |title=Ringing the Changes: The Ashford Ring Road Project Kent County Council |date=27 January 2010 |publisher=Royal Town Planning Institute |url=http://www.rtpi.org.uk/cgi-bin/item.cgi?ap=1&id=3336 |access-date=27 January 2011}}

The scheme has been claimed to have improved safety records. Between November 2008 and January 2011, there have been four road casualties there, resulting from the six reported accidents.{{cite news |title=Just six accidents since Shared Space

|date=20 January 2011 |work=Kent Online |publisher=KM Group |url=http://www.kentonline.co.uk/kentonline/news/2011/january/21/six_accidents_in_shared_space.aspx |access-date=27 January 2011}} Claims about the success of the Ashford scheme were called into question during 2011 by a study conducted by the University of the West of England.

Following the initial reports claiming a success for the Ashford scheme, other UK local councils planned to use a similar approach; these include Southend-on-Sea, Staines, Newcastle-under-Lyme, Hereford, and Edinburgh.{{cite web |title=Winning streak continues for Ashford shared space scheme |date=5 October 2009 |publisher=Grontmij |url=http://grontmij.co.uk/mediacentre/news/Pages/winningstreak.aspx |access-date=27 January 2011}}

There have also been trials in Ipswich, with shared space being a key feature of the design of the new Ravenswood community being built on the site of the former Ipswich Airport.{{cite web |url=http://online.ipswich.gov.uk/ppc/getDoc.aspx?s_Type=pad&s_DocType=LAYO&s_File=e%3a%5cplanning_application_documents%5c2005%5c05-00285-REM_APPLLAYO.pdf |title=Planning Application 05/00285/REM, Planning Layout |access-date=4 March 2007 |date=18 February 2005 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070927152416/http://online.ipswich.gov.uk/ppc/getDoc.aspx?s_Type=pad&s_DocType=LAYO&s_File=e:%5cplanning_application_documents%5c2005%5c05-00285-REM_APPLLAYO.pdf |archive-date=27 September 2007 |url-status=dead}}

At Princess Royal Square (formerly Pier Square) in Weston-super-Mare, the conventional road system has been replaced by a seafront open area. This has been complemented by the restoration of the Coalbrookdale fountain in its centre.

In Poynton, Cheshire, it was found that as well as providing significant safety improvements, and regenerating the retail and social centre, the road capacity was not reduced after the redevelopment of a busy junction in the town incorporated shared space elements. In the scheme, the redevelopment of a multi-lane signalised crossroads, with a traffic flow of 26,000 vehicles per day, which was completed in March 2012, traffic lanes, signals, road markings, road signs and street clutter were all removed. In the first three years after the redevelopment there was one minor personal injury accident, compared to 4-7 serious incidents in each of the three years leading up to the project. Although no speed limit changes were made, average traffic speeds fell to around 20 mph and there were reductions in vehicle journey times as well as reductions in pedestrian delays at the junction.{{cite web|title=Poynton Town Centre: streetscape and place-making project|url=http://www.ice.org.uk/topics/community/Case-studies/Poynton-Town-Centre|publisher=Institution of Civil Engineers|access-date=8 March 2015}}

A pilot road layout project, which includes shared-space elements, is to be trialled in the Stobhill area of Morpeth, Northumberland. Opposition groups argue that the plans are unsafe for children and disabled people.{{cite web | url=http://www.morpethherald.co.uk/news/local-news/request-for-streetscape-meeting-turned-down-1-8153995 | title=Request for streetscape meeting turned down | publisher=Johnston Publishing | work=Morpeth Herald | date=29 September 2016 | access-date=1 October 2016 |last=Coulson |first= Andrew}}

{{see also|Complete streets}}

In the United States, the shared space concept has become more popular in recent years.

In West Palm Beach, Florida, removal of traffic signals and road markings brought pedestrians into much closer contact with cars. The result has been slower traffic, fewer accidents, and shorter trip times.{{cite magazine |last=McNichol

|first=Tom |date=December 2004 |title=Roads Gone Wild |magazine=Wired |volume=12 |issue=12 | url=https://www.wired.com/wired/archive/12.12/traffic.html |access-date = 26 April 2006 }}

In Savannah, Georgia, the Oglethorpe Plan has been adapted to accommodate pedestrian and vehicular traffic throughout a network of wards, each with a central square. The size and configuration of the squares restrains vehicular traffic to speeds under 20 miles per hour, a threshold speed beyond which shared space tends to break down.Wilson, Thomas D. The Oglethorpe Plan. University of Virginia Press, 2012. chapter 5.

In Salt Lake City, Utah the City Creek Center property was designed with a kerbless street and bollards. Following the success of this, the publicly owned side of Regent Street was redone to be kerbless as well.{{Cite web|url=http://www.kuer.org/post/salt-lake-city-announces-regent-street-makeover-plans|title=Salt Lake City Announces Regent Street Makeover Plans|last=Nelson|first=Bob|website=www.kuer.org|date=11 February 2015|language=en|access-date=2019-01-21}}

Shared streets have also been installed in the New York City neighbourhoods of Jamaica, and Flatiron.{{cite web|url=http://www.nyc.gov/html/dot/downloads/pdf/flatiron-shared-street-mar2017.pdf|title=Flatiron Shared Street CB 5 Transportation Committee|publisher=New York City Department of Transportation|date=27 March 2017|access-date=14 May 2017}} In the Financial District, there are plans to remove curbs in areas that have been closed off to vehicular traffic since the 9/11 attacks.{{Cite web|url=https://ny.curbed.com/2018/5/14/17352502/manhattan-wall-street-new-york-stock-exchange-design-proposal|title=Tourist-heavy Wall Street could get pedestrian-friendly improvements|last=Walker|first=Ameena|date=2018-05-14|website=Curbed NY|access-date=2019-01-21}}

In 2018, the Philadelphia region's Metropolitan Planning Organization DVRPC published a guide for engineers and policymakers Curbless Streets: Evaluating Curbless and Shared Space Concepts for Use on City of Philadelphia Streets.{{Cite web|url=https://www.dvrpc.org/Reports/16044.pdf|title=Curbless Streets: Evaluating Curbless and Shared Space Concepts for Use on Philadelphia's Streets.|last=Delaware Valley Regional Planning Commission|date=January 2018|website=DVRPC}} The US Federal Highway Administration has also issued a publication, Accessible Shared Streets: Notable Practices and Considerations for Accommodating Pedestrians with Vision Disabilities.{{Cite web|url=https://www.fhwa.dot.gov/environment/bicycle_pedestrian/publications/accessible_shared_streets/index.cfm|title=Accessible Shared Streets - Publications - Bicycle and Pedestrian Program - Environment - FHWA|website=Federal Highway Administration (FHWA)|access-date=2019-11-09}}

General themes

• Bicycle-friendly
• Cyclability
• Traffic calming
• Traffic conflict
• Tullock's spike

Proponents

• John Adams, United Kingdom
• David Engwicht, Australia
• Martin Cassini, United Kingdom
• Jan Gehl, Denmark
• Eric Britton, France/USA
• Project for Public Spaces, United States

{{Reflist}}

{{commons category}}

• [http://www.dft.gov.uk/publications/ltn-01-11/ Shared space] UK Department for Transport

{{Road}}

{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Shared Space}}

Category:Types of streets

Category:Road safety

Category:Traffic calming

Category:Transport infrastructure

Category:Transportation planning

Category:Sustainable transport