Full steam ahead for Valencia's pedestrianisation project
Wednesday, December 4, 2019 @ 10:11 PM
The city of Valencia is currently undergoing a major transformation, with the redevelopment and pedestrianisation of many of its squares (plazas) moving along at great speed. Ten squares have already been pedestrianised, two are currently in the process of being pedestrianised and another five projects are in the pipeline.
The architects of the ambitious city pedestrianisation project hope the project will tackle climate change from two angles: reducing emissions in the city by limiting traffic to certain areas, and creating a greener environment with more trees and more areas for peope to socialise in. The long-term plan is to "re-naturalise" the city and re-direct the city's growth towards a more sustainable model.
Deputy Mayor and Councilor for Urban Development, Sandra Gómez, says the way forward is to tackle climate change from within our cities. "The main aim of the project has been to study the city, neighbourhood by neighbourhood, reclaiming vital areas so as to improve people's quality of life and support sustainable development", she explained.
Valencia's urban planning, she said, is now geared towards "reclaiming te city's squares as places for people to build a stable and sustainable sense of community". Valencia's squares need to become places where neighbours can "grow, share, play, have fun and live together" she said, adding that before the pedestrianisation project was launched, these squares "were just congested concrete parking lots with barely passable pavements".
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