{"id":256385,"date":"2021-05-21T15:55:38","date_gmt":"2021-05-21T12:55:38","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/en.buradabiliyorum.com\/slaves-to-speed-wed-all-benefit-from-slow-cities\/"},"modified":"2021-05-21T15:55:38","modified_gmt":"2021-05-21T12:55:38","slug":"slaves-to-speed-wed-all-benefit-from-slow-cities","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/slaves-to-speed-wed-all-benefit-from-slow-cities\/","title":{"rendered":"#Slaves to speed, we’d all benefit from ‘slow cities’"},"content":{"rendered":"

“#Slaves to speed, we’d all benefit from ‘slow cities’<\/strong>”<\/p>\n

\n
\n
\n
\"Slaves
\n Credit: Paul Tranter, Author provided
\n <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

Slowing transport in cities provides immense benefits for the health of people, economies and the planet<\/a>, so why are we still obsessed with speed?<\/p>\n

As Mahatma Gandhi observed: “There is more to life than increasing its speed.”<\/p>\n

This speaks to our own physical and mental well-being, as well as to the health of cities in the broadest sense. For the past century we have been told, and largely accepted, a story that “faster travel<\/a> will save time and make everyone better off.” This is myth rather than reality.<\/p>\n

How do people behave when faster travel becomes possible in cities? We assume they get to destinations faster and “save” time. But the sprawl that comes with speed means more time is spent on travel, and people have to work longer hours to pay for all the costs of speed. <\/p>\n

A great paradox of modern times is that the faster we go, the less time we have<\/a>. More time can be saved by slowing city transport than by speeding it up.<\/p>\n

Speed takes a profound toll on our lives<\/a>. Higher city speeds increase road deaths and injuries, air pollution, physical inactivity, infrastructure costs, energy demands<\/a> and climate emergency impacts<\/a>. As long as models, policies, investment, attitudes and behaviors are based on the belief that “faster is always better,” urban planning will be unable<\/a> to resolve the current climate and ecological crises. <\/p>\n

How to conquer our speed addiction<\/b><\/p>\n

An alternative to trying to go faster is to “slow the city,” as we explain in our book, Slow Cities: Conquering our speed addiction for health and sustainability<\/a>. Instead of “mobility” (how far you can go in a given time), the goal of the “slow city” is accessibility (how much you can get to in that time).
\n <\/p>\n

Planning for speed and mobility focuses on saving time, which is rarely achieved in practice<\/a>. Planning for accessibility focuses on time well spent.<\/p>\n

In accessibility-rich places you don’t need to move fast. Hence walking, cycling and public transport are preferred ways to travel. These slow, active modes are also the healthiest and most sustainable modes<\/a>.<\/p>\n

A “slow city” strategy draws on many strands of planning policy, including: <\/p>\n