• whose road space is designated for joint use by vehicles and pedestrians (same level),
• which has no traffic signs (except at entry/exit points) or traffic signals,
• where cars can only park for a short time in designated areas,
• where vehicle drivers aren’t allowed to endanger or impede pedestrians or cyclists and are only allowed to travel at a maximum speed of 20 km/h (optionally 30 km/h), and
• where pedestrians are allowed to use the whole street but are not allowed to intentionally impede vehicle traffic.

Implementation

Due to the ongoing success of Mariahilferstraße, Austria’s premier shopping street, accompanied by significant increases in pedestrian volumes (up from 25,000 to 70,000 per day) since 1996 (due to longer opening hours, a more attractive retail offer and more people coming by foot, bike and public transport), the two adjoining districts decided to redesign the street and transform it into a pedestrian zone and Vienna’s first “Begegnungszone” (shared space) within a $US31m overall budget.

The transformation was accompanied by a large-scale information campaign and opportunities for civic engagement through a dedicated website, newsletter, expert round table discussions, resident surveys, feedback boxes and finally – after a fiercely debated trial (interim redesign) period – decided by a public referendum among the 48,642 residents of the two adjoining districts which brought a narrow 53.2% approval rate at a unusually high participation rate of 68.1%.

Construction began in May 2014 immediately after the positive outcome of the referendum and was completed in November 2014. A second phase of construction is to take place from February to July 2015.

The street’s transformation from a shared space at the beginning of the 20th century into a street dominated by cars in the second half of the century and back to a street for people in the early 21st century with the implementation of pedestrian and shared space areas can be seen clearly in the following pictures:

In 1908 (left; CC August Stauda), Mariahilferstraße was a street for pedestrians who shared the road with trams (which were later removed due to subway construction). In the photo from 2008 (right; CC Douglas Sprott), Mariahilferstraße was dominated by cars and people were forced to the footpaths and usually could only cross the large shopping street at formal crossing points. (click pictures to enlarge)

During the trial period, most people still stayed on the footpaths due to their physical separation and to the different street surfaces (level difference and pavements, traffic signs, bollards). (click pictures to enlarge)

Pedestrian zone (left) and shared space (right) after the opening in November 2014. (click pictures to enlarge)

Evaluation

As the first construction phase delivering the first shared space and pedestrian zone was recently completed in November 2014, there is to date no quantitative evaluation on increases in pedestrian volumes and other factors.

Project overview with first construction phase in 2014 (shared space light grey on the left and pedestrian zone in dark grey in the center) and second construction phase in 2015 (shared space light grey on the right). (click picture to enlarge)

Moreover, such studies would only have limited significance in December due to the closure of the whole street to cars and bikes on the four Christmas shopping weekends each year. There are also no other quantitative studies on shared spaces in Vienna as Mariahilferstraße is the first shared space to be implemented but there is a long tradition of successful pedestrian streets since the 1960s with almost 100 pedestrian streets in Vienna today.

However, based on qualitative observations during the trial period and after the first construction phase, it can be seen how the street already acts as a catalyst for urban transformation with pedestrians now walking in the middle of the street and claiming more space once the differences in surfaces and surface levels were removed. As Mariahilferstraße allows us to directly compare a shared space and pedestrian zone approach, it can also be observed that this effect is noticeably more predominant in the pedestrian zone than in the shared space zone where cars are present.

Nonetheless, Mariahilferstraße supports the argument that streets with mixed use buildings and a high desire of pedestrians to cross the street – such as shopping streets, old city centre areas or rail station forecourts – are well suited for shared space approaches. While Mariahilferstraße is Austria’s largest shopping street, it should be remembered that the shared space approach can also be applied to smaller streets but might have disadvantages compared to pedestrian streets:

A “Begegnungszone” shared space in a smaller, rural city in Austria (left; Source: VCÖ) and Kärntner Straße – Vienna’s first pedestrian street – as an example for a street that works better as a pedestrian street due to the high volume of pedestrians (right). (click pictures to enlarge)

Strengths

Higher priority for pedestrians and cyclists

The redesign of Mariahilferstraße shows how a street for cars where pedestrians are pushed at the edges, with narrow, crowded sidewalks and long waiting times at traffic signals can be transformed into a street for people with higher priority for pedestrians and cyclists. The equal treatment of all traffic modes, the integration of bikeshare stations and the availability of subway and tram connections show the emphasis on accessibility and quality, multi-modality and interconnections as integral parts of a sustainable transportation approach.

Moreover, the availability of more places for pedestrians to sit down, observe, communicate, play, and so forth adds to the argument that life in public spaces is a key urban attraction and that “the sight of people attracts still other people”, thereby strengthening the role of the street as a “major point of transaction and communication”. In this regard, the removal of on street parking to create this space was fundamental to creating this higher prioritisation of people.

Increased safety and comfort through traffic calming and better street design

The equal treatment of all traffic modes, the lower speed limit, the removal of traffic signs and traffic lights, the levelling of the street and the addition of street furniture and other objects contributes to traffic calming and therefore to increased pedestrian safety (especially when crossing the street), less noise and less pollution, thereby increasing the quality of life for both residents and visitors to the street. In fact, the traffic speed of 20 km/h is lower than Mariahilferstraße’s previous speed limit of 30 km/h and the general speed limits on Vienna’s streets of 30 km/h or 50 km/h (on higher-order streets).

In particular, the better street design also results in wider footpaths and more space in front of shops as chairs and tables of cafés and restaurants move to the centre of the street, thereby also creating space for sitting and standing at the street’s edge zones. Street furniture and other elements include four water tables, five seating lounges, 24 new tree pits, 82 new seating opportunities and 111 new street lights with infrastructure for free public WiFi that should also encourage people to linger.

In addition, a barrier-free ground-level design and an integrated guidance system for the blind further improves safety and comfort for a particularly vulnerable population group. Finally, due to the removal of traffic signals, average vehicle travel time should not increase significantly.

Economic, environmental and social impacts

According to studies from other cities, pedestrians and cyclists usually spend more money locally than car drivers. With the redesign of the street, it also becomes easier for them to switch from one side of the street to the other, thereby improving access to all shops on the street. The positive experiences from people sitting outside in the new commercial and public seating opportunities due to mild temperatures last November as well as first positive feedback from business owners suggest that the redesign will have overall positive economic impacts.

From an environmental and social point of view, the removal of on street parking and restriction of, and reduced prioritisation of, car access also contributes to getting more people out walking, cycling and taking public transport, thereby lowering greenhouse gas emissions. In addition, as Mariahilferstraße’s two adjoining districts previously lacked quality public space, the transformation serving as a positive example for the role of streets as the most vital yet underutilized public spaces in cities.

Public engagement

The City of Vienna started a broad public dialogue in November 2011, three years before the opening of the transformed street. This included public information (including renderings and physical models as methods for visualising the redesign), round tables, surveys, feedback on the trial period, an exhibition and finally the aforementioned referendum.

Given the narrow result of the referendum, the fierce debates – including strong resistance from some business groups, media and political parties and the general resistance of Viennese people to change – it was clear that such an extensive public engagement strategy was crucial to enable this street redesign to happen. So, it isn’t surprising that the City of Vienna’s approach to shared spaces must always include extensive public engagement and outreach.

Some elements of the engagement process: Public information with renderings (left), an exhibition with a physical model (centre) and a visible invitation to take part in the referendum by returning the voting cards to a mailbox (right). (click pictures to enlarge)

Weaknesses

Lack of pedestrian priority

Compared to similar international regulations (e.g. Switzerland, Belgium, France), the Austrian legislative framework for shared spaces is different in the sense that there is no absolute priority for pedestrians but instead equal treatment of all road users. Combined with the fact that pedestrians are not allowed to intentionally impede vehicles and the legal possibility of increasing the speed limit to 30 km/h, this makes it more difficult and confusing for pedestrians to cross the street in a secure and comfortable way. Moreover, too many surface markings can also discourage pedestrians from actively using the shared space.

Surface markings for loading zones, taxi stands and other elements confuse pedestrians and indirectly take space away from them by essentially reallocating this space to vehicles. (click pictures to enlarge)

Shared space, pedestrian zone or a combination of both approaches?

The comparison of the street’s pedestrian zone and shared space raises the question of whether a fully pedestrianised street would have been the better outcome. This is in line with observations that the behaviour patterns of pedestrians on streets with limited traffic are much closer to those from traffic streets than from areas that were totally free of cars. On the other hand, pedestrians’ hesitation in using the whole street in the shared space might also stem from the fact that Viennese people are more used to pedestrian zones than to shared spaces.

Comparing people’s use of the street in pedestrian zone (left) and shared space (right) (Source: tramwayforum.at) (click pictures to enlarge)

Lack of overall strategy and executive power

While, according to its new Mobility Plan, the City of Vienna aims at establishing a “new mobility culture where pedestrians, cyclists, public transport users and drivers encounter with appreciation and attention” through the creation of new shared spaces and (temporary) pedestrian zones, the City has no overall strategy nor executive power to transform streets into shared spaces as this can only be decided by the respective districts (but needs approval from the City’s traffic department).

While the City states that it wants to transform one major street per district by 2025, this will only be possible if districts (sometimes with different political leadership) cooperate and are willing to spend money. Similarly, there is also no legal possibility for citizens, neighbourhood associations, etc. to propose shared spaces to their district or to the City of Vienna.

Street design

While the street’s redesign includes new street furniture and other elements which are essential for traffic calming and the quality of lingering in the street, there has been a considerable criticism of the materials used, such as them being uncomfortable and easily getting dirty. The limited colour palette (which will hopefully improve in spring/summer) as well as the limited use of water elements and green spaces are other issues. If these issues were addressed, it would encourage people to stay longer in the space. In addition, the absence of sufficient bike parking decreases accessibility and modal choice.

Greystone and brown wood are the dominant materials used (left), tree pits are practical but not natural (center) and water elements are only used infrequently (right). The redesign lacks colour and diverse elements. (click pictures to enlarge)

Recommendations

While the referendum on Mariahilferstraße’s redesign only passed by a narrow margin, it can be assumed that the redesign has a much higher approval rate now that it has been implemented given the positive feedback from citizens, shop owners and media. However, there is still room for improvement, especially as this is Vienna’s first “Begegnungszone” (shared space).

These suggestions are based on the aforementioned experiences and general arguments:

(1) Pedestrian priority: Give pedestrians a higher priority than other modes in the legal framework, allow a lower (instead of a higher) speed limit of 10 km/h and reduce surface markings and other elements that discourage pedestrians’ street use.

(2) Clear roadmap and easier implementation: The City of Vienna should develop a clear, overall strategy (roadmap) for the identification and transformation of streets and think about transferring executive power from the districts to the City to foster a coherent, city-wide approach. Moreover, it should be easier for residents and citizen groups to suggest streets to be transformed into shared spaces.

(3) Mix of different approaches: After the ambitious redesign of Mariahilferstraße, it will be crucial to show that shared spaces are a viable solution for both smaller streets and further large projects. However, as there are no “one size fits all” solutions, every proposal has to be evaluated on a case by case basis to see if a street redesign makes sense or if a shared space or pedestrian zone approach makes more sense. Moreover, while a temporary trial period helps in visualising and anticipating the proposed changes, it could be improved through the increased and better use of colours and street furniture.

(4) Better street design: More creative, diverse, colourful and courageous design of street furniture and other objects as well as more use of water and green elements would further improve the quality of public space within the shared space. Moreover, it has to be evaluated how many and which objects, surface markings and other elements are best employed to create a good environment for all traffic modes, most particularly pedestrians.

(5) Integral public engagement: Vienna’s experience clearly shows that – despite the challenges of to several group’s resistance – a thorough public engagement process is vital for the success and acceptance of such a street redesign. This public debate might be easier when it comes to transforming smaller, less prominent streets.

***

Note: This post was first published on Vienncouver.com as part of the “A Tale of Two Cities” series on shared spaces in Auckland and Vienna by Darren Davis and me. The series emerged from our written assignments for the Next-Generation Cities and Transportation course of Simon Fraser University’s Next-Generation Transportation certificate program.

Gemeindebauten like Sandleiten have not only become a characteristic element of Viennese architecture and culture since the 1920s but also play an essential role in preserving the city’s affordability. Most Gemeindebauten were built between the World Wars when men returned from the war and demand for apartments increased while private investors weren’t willing to build new apartment complexes due to rent caps introduced during WWI to keep apartments affordable.

So, the City of Vienna introduced a residential construction tax to build complexes like Sandleiten which was constructed between 1924 and 1928 and has 1,587 apartments. Like many other Gemeindebauten, Sandleiten was built around a central square (“Matteottiplatz”) and was meant to be a village within the city with many community areas, 75 shops, 58 craft businesses, three nurseries, a post office, a pharmacy and even a public library and a cinema.

Today, many of these shops and amenities have disappeared and the housing complex has undergone significant changes, especially in its demographic structure due to migration to Vienna in the past decades and the changes among the working class who make up most of a Gemeindebau’s residents. While this also creates conflicts and dreariness, several cultural and social organisations and many residents try to bring people togehter and manage change in a positive way.

A phone booth that was transformed into a small community library (with many children’s books in residents’ different languages) and a community garden with mobile garden boxes are two small but effective efforts that build community by bringing people together in this rather impersonal environment. Some pictures from the walking tour should also illustrate the diverse character and typical architecture of Sandleiten:

For more pictures, take a look at TEDxVienna’s blogpost, Patrick Löwenstein’s blogpost, Mitten in Wien’s blogpost, Justyna Ziarko’s Facebook album or #tedvienna photos on Instagram.

As the New York Times recently stated, “you might not expect to find such a cultivated metropolis two hours down the road from Vienna toward Ljubljana, but Graz has a palpable joie de vivre, thanks in part to the presence of its six universities and over 40,000 students.”

A city that offers “rich design, art and culinary scenes” and is “home to scores of boutiques, shops, restaurants and museums, many housed in restored Baroque-era buildings in the city’s well-preserved Old Town”, is probably also Austria’s bicycle capital, was Europe’s Capital of Culture in 2003 and sees itself as a City of Design and a City of Human Rights.

By buing built around the Schlossberg mountain, it also offers superb views over the city. Its Central Station is home to Peter Kogler’s famous art installation, the city’s most impressive bike rack, a grey and lifeless new station forecourt, one of Europe’s largest smart city projects and a new light-flooded underground tram terminal.

Speaking of the city’s characteristic green trams, Graz offers free public transit on its tram system in its downtown. On the downside, the city is also known for having the highest levels of air pollution in Austria.

On the downside, due to a train strike on Monday I also had the “pleasure” of getting to know Brussels as one of the most congested cities in Europe, with a nerve-stretching 2-hour bus ride from the city center to the airport that only took 15 minutes by train the day before.

Here are some impressions from the walk that was lead by local district mayor Thomas Blimlinger and transportation journalist Harald Jahn who shared their broad knowledge on Austria’s largest and most important shopping street with us:

The two shared space areas are used by pedestrians, cyclists and cars at a maximum speed of 20 km/h. As the current changes are only temporary (depending on the outcome of the referendum), the street still looks like a street for cars and people therefore hesitate to leave the sidewalks due to the different level of the street and the sidewalks.

The recently opened exhibition features renderings and a model of the new Mariahilferstraße as well as information on the planning process, the citizen engagement efforts and best practices from cities around the world. Of course, it attracted a lot of interest during our walking tour.

The street has undergone a lot of huge changes in the past century – one of the biggest changes was abandoning the streetcar lines in favour of a subway line, despite the resistance of most shop owners due to the long distances between the subway stops. But the Viennese transportation authority refuses steadfastly to have subway and streetcar lines running parallel on the same street.

Moreover, there were also huge changes in terms of the mix of shops and amenities. For instance, while Mariahilferstraße was home to many large cinemas in the past, there’s only one small cinema left today. In contrast, many cafés, restaurants and ice cream parlours opened and there’s a lot of interest in adding further amenities as well as tables on the sidewalk in front of the cafés and restaurants once the street will hopefully be turned into a truly pedestrian area.

Today, 72% of shops are clothing stores, of which many are large international chains (e.g. there are three H&M stores on Mariahilferstraße as well as many other well-known retailers). As more and more retailers are eager to open a store there, high rents and other factors increase the pressure on other stores like this old household supply store which will be closing soon.

Despite some issues with the bus lane and other initial problems during the temporary trial period, people already use the pedestrian area extensively and hope that the street will be turned from a street for cars into a street for pedestrians, cyclists and especially children who gain new public space in a district that has the least green areas of all Viennese districts.

Just a snapshot: One of the many local businessmen who are in favour of the new pedestrian area. As you can see, he’s also an enthusiastic cargo bike rider!

And another snapshot: A bicycle taxi, Viennese style. It’s called Faxi, combining the words “Fahrrad” (bicycle) and “Taxi”.

It was particularly interesting to see how the street has (and hasn’t) changed based on old photographs. In particular, it is impressive to realize how the store mix has changed over time. I guess that there will be further changes once the street will become a truly pedestrian area which will also pose new challenges to local authorities, e.g. to prevent too much noise if many cafés want to have outdoor seating.

Mariahilferstraße Trivia: Due to different amounts of sunlight, the trees on the right (7th district) are usually higher than the trees on the left (6th district). This fact and the stories about many of the street’s historic buildings reminded me that it’s so important to also look up when all your attention is caught by the shops on the ground floor, especially in a city like Vienna that’s so gifted with beautiful architecture.

The official campaign by the City of Vienna uses excellent renderings to show people how the new Mariahilferstraße will look like. Places to sit down and features like free wifi will hopefully make the street a great place to stay.

So, it’s up to the citizens of the two districts adjacent to the Mariahilferstraße to decide on the street’s future, whether it will be turned back into a street for cars or become a street for people.

As we’re approaching the third anniversary of the 2011 earthquake which killed 185 people, the question is whether this tragedy will turn out as an opportunity to build vibrant, livable places for people instead of repeating mistakes from the past and from other cities. So, I was very impressed when I recently received an email from a friend and Urbanist in New Zealand showing that Christchurch is heading into the right direction thanks to many engaged and creative citizens.

Enter Darren Davis, Principal Public Transport Planner at Auckland Transport who was in Christchurch for a few days to see the level of interim placemaking and tactical urbanism taking place as a way of activating the city centre where over 1,000 buildings – including 200 heritage buildings – have been demolished and the final demolitions are still taking place.

His words and pictures describe how Christchurch is starting to bounce back from the effects of the devastating earthquakes of 2010 and 2011, unleashing in its wake amazing creativity and place making in the city centre as it edges towards recovery and rebuild. So, I’d like to let Darren tell this amazing story in his words:

“The eeriest thing about Christchurch are the places that got stuck in time when the big earthquake struck on 22 February 2011: The Town Hall advertising forthcoming events (which never happened) and cafes where the half-drunk cups of coffee are still on the tables.

Christchurch is a giant experiment in city rebuilding with a city council that is well-intentioned but short of cash (not helped by the fact that the city was heavily underinsured for an earthquake that it never expected) and a national government in Wellington which seems to believe that building more and wider roads and sprawled suburbia is the way to go.

The cost of reconstruction is estimated at $NZ40 billion but the human cost of the quakes is many, many times that. The city has been without a heart since 2011 and will only slowly come back to life, in the formal sense of new buildings and places, between 2015 and 2017 as the so-called “anchor projects” come on line.

The absence of a heart to the city has created tectonic shifts in the urban geography over months that normally take place over decades. Sadly, a lot of this is people fleeing the devastated zones of the city for sprawled subdivisions in peripheral areas that are not prone to liquefaction. The long term cost of this will be increased social isolation, increased commuting times, and living in disconnected communities with lots of cul-de-sacs where driving is often the only realistic option for many trips.

But the amazing thing about Christchurch, which my photos try to demonstrate, is the unleashing of creativity with non-conventional space activation in the city centre and other heavily quake affected areas, where there was often only vacant land and devastation. In the process, this is building community in ways that would be difficult to imagine without a catalysing event like an earthquake.

This creativity ranges from the Restart container mall bringing retail back to the devastated city centre much earlier than would have otherwise been possible, through to interim streetscapes and multiple community-led “gap filler” projects such as the Pallet Pavilion.

This is powerful placemaking and space activation in what is traditionally regarded as a very conservative city. It has also brought significant life back to Christchurch City Centre in a whole range of unconventional, quirky and downright cool ways.”

Let me finally share some of Darren’s great photos which tell the remarkable stories that came out of this urban tragedy. For more photos, visit Darren’s Flickr set “Christchurch 2014”.

Transitional Cathedral Square Project: Artist Chris Heaphy has created a ‘’contemporary whare’’ that forms a visual link to the physical, cultural and spiritual life of Ngāi Tahu and to the Anglican Church, aligned to the entrance to the devastated Christchurch Cathedral.

Christchurch City Council’s Transitional Cathedral Square project has brought people back to the devastated city centre with event and temporary activations. The hoarding murals are by artists Sara Hughes and Chris Heaphy.

A rock cairn in The Square. Each rock has a message from someone to the people of Christchurch in the wake of the devastating 2010-2011 earthquakes. In effect, the messages on the rocks form a moving series of love notes to Christchurch.

Adjacent to the Christchurch Cathedral, heavily damaged in the February 2011 earthquake and now partially demolished, the Festival of Flowers created a pile of useable tactical urbanism interventions to activate The Square.

The Restart Mall has replaced the traditional bricks and mortar retail on the main shopping street of Cashel Mall with a container mall full of local, regional, national and multinational retailers.

Christchurch City Council has created a temporary streetscape in Colombo Street, the main north south street, to reinforce a 30 km/h speed environment, to make the space more friendly to pedestrians and cyclists and to support the revival of the city centre.

The Pallet Pavillion is undoubtedly the flagship gap filler project done by the community, for the community. Made up of a space enclosed by blue painted pallet, it is a venue for an enormous range and diversity of events and activities.

Weekend market as part of the Sound Garden Gap Filler by Life in Vacant Spaces.

Parklet, part of the “Greening the Rubble” relocatable park on Gloucester Street adjacent to the Sound Garden.

New Regent Street is one of the first retail areas to reopen in Christchurch city centre since the earthquakes of 2010 and 2011. Service on the Christchurch Tramway was restored in October 2013 on part of its route linking New Regent Street to the Canterbury Museum via Cathedral Square and Worcester Street.

The first stage of the Avon River restoration project has put native rushes and other plantings in an area formerly exclusively the preserve of exotic species as part of a large-scale riparian restoration project.

Chess board with pieces made up of road cones, ubiquitous in Christchurch in the rebuild phase.

While much has been done to activate parts of Christchurch’s devastated city centre, it is an undemiable fact that the sheer scale of the devastation – with over 1,000 buildings already demolished, including over 200 heritage buildings – has irreversibly changed Christchurch.

P.S.: You can also follow Darren on Twitter: @DarrenDavis10. For more information on these placemaking and activation innovations, visit the projects’ websites: Gap Filler, Life in Vacant Spaces, Pallet Pavilion, Restart Mall and Transitional City. There are profiles of a huge range of cool projects on these websites with heaps of good ideas that could be readily replicated elsewhere.

It’s about nature, humans, freedom, love, inspiration and so many other important things in life. It’s about relationships and community, and I guess there’s no better way to show this than with Vancouver Cycle Chic’s stunning series of short films on cycling in the world’s most beautiful and livable city. Produced by local cycling advocate Chris Bruntlett and his team, these films are not about bikes but about people, places and the diversity of the city.

In this sense, their latest film on Gordon Price and his partner Len Sobo is also more about their beautiful lives, neighbourhood and relationship than about cycling itself – or, to put it in Gordon’s words, “a profile of us a couple, on an afternoon jaunt in the West End on a cold day in November”.

And here are the other short films featuring four inspiring residents of this city telling their individual cycling stories, talking about their diverse backgrounds and neighbourhoods and introducing us to the beauty of their city. Have a great Sunday!

Camille: “Bike riding for me is the one time I have where I don’t have to think about anything other than the rules of the road.”

BIKES: “As far as freedom goes, it’s just the best. It’s the best way to get around.”

Cecily: “It puts the city on a human level for me, and it just makes me feel like I’m a part of the city instead of feeling apart from the city.”

Simon: “Everything inspires me, just cycling around, walking around and absorbing.”

So, I really appreciated when Copenhagenize last year published a 10-part video series on the “Top 10 Design Elements in Copenhagen’s Bicycle Culture” which show us how we can make our cities better places for cyclists and essentially for all people.

Enjoy these videos and have a great Sunday! Or, a Mikael Colville-Andersen would say: “Copenhagenize the planet and have a lovely day.”

“It is the most important urban development venture ever initiated in Vienna and one of the largest of its kind in all of Europe. The planning area covers 240 hectares, roughly equalling the combined 7th and 8th municipal districts of Vienna or 340 football pitches. The city is to be built in several construction phases over a period of at least two decades. aspern boasts both urban and country appeal, offering lots of public zones and ample open spaces.

The heart of Vienna’s Urban Lakeside will be an approx. 90.000 sq m central park with a 50,000 sq m lake. With its landscaped banks and promenade, it will be the meeting-point for residents and all those who work in aspern. The lake is the centre and at the same time the central idea inspiring the city, embodying the focal concept of urbanism and the motto “enrich your life”. Easily accessible from all points of aspern, the lake continues in watercourses and green swathes to the east and south-west.

Vienna’s Urban Lakeside will be, offer and connect many things: economic hub, business and high-tech centre, science, research and education quarter as well as recreational zone; city and nature, alternative energy resources and modern architecture; innovative “townhouses”, ground-floor zones with shops, cafés and restaurants, and quality of design. aspern will unite many generations and lifestyles in one spot.

The objective lies in planning a place that is vibrant and of high experience value. With its interplay of different factors, such as targeted mixed-use concepts, the courage to embrace small-scale structures, but also creativity and openness of planning, aspern appeals to people who prefer an urban yet sustainability-conscious lifestyle, who enjoy the present and look forward to tomorrow.”

While the first residents are expected to move to aspern in the course of 2014, the construction of the lake and subway station were already finished last year, as can be seen in these two timelapse videos. Have a great Sunday!

And this is how it will look like 10-15 years from now (pictures (c) schreinerkastler / Wien 3420 Aspern Development AG 2013):

Out of more than 20 inspiring talks, I’d like to first share two talks by two urbanists that I particularly appreciate for their bold ideas on transit and walking which also happen to be my two favorite modes of transport in Vienna. So, let’s watch Enrique Peñalosa’s talk on “Why buses represent democracy in action” and Jeff Speck’s talk on “The Walkable City”:

Moreover, I’ve already blogged about Janette Sadik-Khan’s talk “New York’s streets? Not so mean any more” but would like to share this excellent and important talk again as it complements the other two talks by showing the transformative power of temporary structures and paint in changing our streets and other public places:

Finally, Chris Downey, a blind architect, planner, and consultant adds another perspective by explaining why cities are fantastic places for the blind and encouraging us to design the city with the blind in mind. What a stunning, inspiring and entertaining talk!

You can view all TEDCity2.0 sessions from NYC here: TEDCity2.0 on Livestream. Have a great Sunday!