Living Streets (The Pedestrians Association) | |
![]() Logo of Living Streets | |
Formation | 13 August 1929 |
---|---|
Founder | Robert Cecil and Tom Foley |
Founded at | Essex Hall, Strand, London |
Type | Nonprofit |
Registration no. | Charity 1108448 Company 05368409 |
Purpose | Promote pedestrian safety |
Headquarters | 133 Whitechapel High Street, London, E1 7QA |
Area served | United Kingdom |
President | Lord Bates |
Chief Executive | Stephen Edwards |
Board of trustees (14 as of 2020) [1] | |
Subsidiaries | Living Streets Services Limited (Company 07471406) |
Budget (2018/2019) | £5.5M |
Revenue (2018/2019) | £5.6M |
Staff (2018/2019) | 82 |
Volunteers (2018/2019) | 100 |
Website | www |
Formerly called | The Pedestrians' Association |
Living Streets is a charity from the United Kingdom. Their goal is to promote pedestrian safety. It was founded in 1929 as the Pedestrians' Association and became known as the Pedestrians' Association for Road Safety in 1952. The current name was adopted in 2001. It is a voting member of the International Federation of Pedestrians.
In the late 1920's, a young journalist, Tom Foley, became aware of the issue of road safety and contacted Viscount Cecil of Chelwood who was also increasingly concerned about the subject. Together they formed the Pedestrians' Association and its first meeting was held in 1929. This was announced: The Association was formed at a meeting held in the Essex Hall, London, on 13 August 1929. The meeting was convened jointly by Messrs J.J. Bailey and T.C. Foley, and was done by private invitation to people who had written to Viscount Cecil about pedestrians' grievances or who had written to T.C. Foley following a letter he had sent to the press.
The Pedestrians' Association explained its purpose as follows: in view of the serious danger of motor traffic today, an association be formed for the defence of public rights, especially of pedestrians.[ citation needed ]
Viscount Cecil of Chelwood, who was president from 1929 until 1944, was a high profile peer and had established the League of Nations. He was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 1937.
The following year the Road Traffic Act 1930 removed the existing 20 mph speed limit for motor cars at a time when UK road casualties were running at a rate of 7,000 per year (which is nearly three times the current rate). They also helped write the very first Highway Code which was first published in full in 1934.
During the 1930s its campaigns helped to persuade the British Government to introduce the driving test, to reinstate a speed limit for motorcars and pedestrian crossings. A speed limit of 30 mph in urban areas and for driving tests was within the Road Traffic Act 1934, passed under Leslie Hore-Belisha, the-then Minister of Transport.
As a result of lobbying during World War II, the association lobbied the government to amend its regulations to allow pedestrians to carry a small hand torch and to paint the sides of the road white, to increase pedestrian safety.
In 1950, following his retirement from politics, Hore-Belisha was made vice-president and in 1952 the organisation changed its name to the Pedestrians' Association for Road Safety. The organisation changed its name to Living Streets in 2001.
The charity has around 60 local branches and affiliated groups across the UK, and also undertakes consultancy work for local authorities.
The charity is best known for its Walk to School campaign, which has been going for over 20 years and supports over one million children in 4000 schools to walk more. Living Streets' WOW – year-round walk to school challenge [2] and Walk to School Week make up the campaign, which is one of the UK’s leading behaviour change campaigns for young people.
On average, WOW encourages 23% more primary school children to walk to school and reduces congestion by 30% outside the school gates. Children love to take part in the challenge which sees them rewarded with badges.
Every May, Living Streets raises the profile of walking with its National Walking Month campaign. [3] The campaign usually encourages people to #Try20 – that is fit 20 minutes more walking into each day throughout May. The charity highlights the benefits of walking on health, the environment and local economies. Key ambassadors to the month include Kate Humble.
Other high profile campaigns the charity has played an integral part in, include a recent appeal to all London Mayoral candidates (2015) to pedestrianise Oxford Street. Mayor Sadiq Khan has committed to carrying out this work by 2020.
Living Streets has also made headway, along with the Guide Dogs, on giving power to local authorities to limit pavement parking only to roads which need it. The charity’s work in Scotland has provoked further development, with commitment for cutting pavement parking by the current government.
The annual Charles Maher Award recognises an individual or organisation that has championed walking in their community. The award was set up in honour of Charles Mayer, a campaigner and longstanding supporter of Living Streets.
Awardees:
2019 – Brenda Puech, Living Streets local campaigner [4] and Local Group Chair, based in Hackney
2018 – Alison Blamire, Causey Development Trust [5]
2017 – Morag Rose, Loiterers' Resistance Movement [6]
2016
2015 – Holly Newby
A sidewalk, pavement, footpath in Australia, India, New Zealand and Ireland, or footway is a path along the side of a road. Usually constructed of concrete, pavers, brick, stone, or asphalt, it is designed for pedestrians. A sidewalk is normally higher than the roadway, and separated from it by a kerb. There may also be a planted strip between the sidewalk and the roadway and between the roadway and the adjacent land.
A zebra crossing or a marked crosswalk is a pedestrian crossing marked with white stripes. Normally, pedestrians are afforded precedence over vehicular traffic, although the significance of the markings may vary by jurisdiction. They are known as "zebra" crossings as the stripes resemble the coat of a zebra.
A pedestrian crossing is a place designated for pedestrians to cross a road, street or avenue. The term "pedestrian crossing" is also used in the Vienna and Geneva Conventions, both of which pertain to road signs and road traffic.
A Belisha beacon is a yellow-coloured globe lamp atop a tall black and white striped pole, marking pedestrian crossings of roads in the United Kingdom, Ireland, and other countries historically influenced by Britain, such as Hong Kong, Malta, and Singapore. The beacons were named after Leslie Hore-Belisha (1893–1957), the Minister of Transport who, in 1934, added beacons to pedestrian crossings, marked by large metal studs in the road surface. These crossings were later painted in black and white stripes, and thus are known as zebra crossings. Legally, pedestrians have priority on such crossings.
A pedestrian is a person traveling on foot, whether walking or running. In modern times, the term usually refers to someone walking on a road or pavement, but this was not the case historically. Pedestrians may also be wheelchair users or other disabled people who use mobility aids.
Traffic calming uses physical design and other measures to improve safety for motorists, car drivers, pedestrians and cyclists. It has become a tool to combat speeding and other unsafe behaviours of drivers. It aims to encourage safer, more responsible driving and potentially reduce traffic flow. Urban planners and traffic engineers have many strategies for traffic calming, including narrowed roads and speed humps. Such measures are common in Australia and Europe, but less so in North America. Traffic calming is a calque of the German word Verkehrsberuhigung – the term's first published use in English was in 1985 by Carmen Hass-Klau.
Street reclaiming is the process of converting, or otherwise returning streets to a stronger focus on non-car use — such as walking, cycling and active street life. It is advocated by many urban planners and urban economists, of widely varying political points of view. Its primary benefits are thought to be:
Leslie Hore-Belisha, 1st Baron Hore-Belisha, PC was a British Liberal, then National Liberal Member of Parliament (MP) and Cabinet Minister. He later joined the Conservative Party. He proved highly successful in modernising the British road system in 1934–1937 as Minister of Transport. As War Secretary, 1937–1940, he feuded with the commanding generals and was removed in 1940. Some writers believe anti-semitism played a role in both his dismissal and in blocking his appointment as Minister of Information. One historian compares his strong and weak points:
He was a brilliant speaker, a warm and engaging personality, a go-getter and a persistent driver, a master of the unconventional or indirect approach, a patriot and a man of moral and physical courage, not a great intellect but an original with a flair for imaginative gestures and for public relations. He also had personal weaknesses. He was extremely self-centred and had a fine conceit of himself. At times he was accused of sharp practice. ... Sharp practitioner or not, [his] quickness of mind and tongue, and transparent ambition to be seen to succeed, made him vulnerable to smears. ... His over-assertiveness ... led him to appear inconsiderate of the feelings and views of others.
Road traffic safety refers to the methods and measures used to prevent road users from being killed or seriously injured. Typical road users include pedestrians, cyclists, motorists, vehicle passengers, and passengers of on-road public transport.
A dead end, also known as a cul-de-sac, or a no-through road or no-exit road, is a street with only one combined inlet and outlet.
Jaywalking is the act of pedestrians walking in or crossing a roadway if that act contravenes traffic regulations. The term originated in the United States as a derivation of the phrase jay-drivers, people who drove horse-drawn carriages and automobiles on the wrong side of the road, before taking its current meaning. Jaywalking was coined as the automobile arrived in the street in the context of the conflict between pedestrian and automobiles, more specifically the nascent automobile industry.
A living street is a street designed with the interests of pedestrians and cyclists in mind by providing enriching and experiential spaces. Living streets also act as social spaces, allowing children to play and encouraging social interactions on a human scale, safely and legally. Living streets consider all pedestrians granting equal access to elders and those who are disabled. These roads are still available for use by motor vehicles; however, their design aims to reduce both the speed and dominance of motorized transport. The reduction of motor vehicle dominance creates more opportunities for public transportation.
A walking bus is a form of student transport for young schoolchildren who, chaperoned typically by two adults, walk in a train-like procession. The children may walk to school along a set route, with some similarities to a school bus route, with designated "bus stops" and "pick up times" at which they pick up and "drop off" schoolmates.
Complete streets is a transportation policy and design approach that requires streets to be planned, designed, operated and maintained to enable safe, convenient and comfortable travel and access for users of all ages and abilities regardless of their mode of transportation. Complete Streets allow for safe travel by those walking, cycling, driving automobiles, riding public transportation, or delivering goods.
Walk to School is a British campaign promoting the benefits of walking to school as student transport. It is a founder member of the IWALK organisation.
In urban planning, walkability is the accessibility of amenities by foot. It is based on the idea that urban spaces should be more than just transport corridors designed for maximum vehicle throughput. Instead, it should be relatively complete livable spaces that serve a variety of uses, users, and transportation modes and reduce the need for cars for travel.
The Road Traffic Act 1934 was an act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom introduced by the Minister of Transport, Leslie Hore-Belisha. The Act was made in a year in which there had been a record numbers of road casualties.
30 km/h zones and the similar 20 mph zones are forms of speed management used across areas of urban roads in some jurisdictions. The nominal maximum speed limits in these zones are 30 kilometres per hour (19 mph) and 20 miles per hour (32 km/h) respectively. Although these zones do have the nominal speed limit posted, speeds are generally ensured by the use of traffic calming measures, though limits with signs and lines only are increasingly used in the UK.
The Loiterers Resistance Movement (2006–present) is a "Manchester-based collective of artists and activists interested in psychogeography and public space." The Loiterers Resistance Movement (LRM) are core contributors to what Tina Richardson has identified as the "new psychogeography", and a variety of scholars have cited the LRM as key to the development of contemporary British psychogeography.
The green transport hierarchy (Canada), street user hierarchy (US), sustainable transport hierarchy (Wales), urban transport hierarchy or road user hierarchy is a hierarchy of modes of passenger transport prioritising green transport. It is a concept used in transport reform groups worldwide and in policy design. In 2020, the UK government consulted about adding to the Highway Code a road user hierarchy prioritising pedestrians. It is a key characteristic of Australian transport planning.