Examination of Witnesses (Questions 276
- 279)
WEDNESDAY 14 FEBRUARY 2001
MISS SOPHIE
ANDREAE AND
MR DICKON
ROBINSON
Chairman
276. I welcome the witnesses to the third session
of the committee's inquiry into walking in towns and cities. Please
identify yourselves for the record.
(Miss Andreae) I am Sophie Andreae, a
commissioner of the Commission for Architecture and the Built
Environment.
(Mr Robinson) I am Dickon Robinson and also a commissioner
of CABE.
277. Do you want to say anything by way of introduction
or are you happy to go straight into questions?
(Miss Andreae) You have our paper and the leaflet
about the commission, so you know what it does. I do not believe
that it is particularly necessary to say anything in addition
to that.
Mr O'Brien
278. You are familiar with the Government's
10-year plan and local transport plans. Are they consistent with
the proposals in the urban and rural White Papers?
(Miss Andreae) In broad terms, the answer must be
yes, but the emphasis on walking is absolutely fundamental to
urban renaissance. The notion that the pedestrian is king is crucial
to the creation of livable cities. Perhaps the emphasis on walking
has not been brought out, and obviously a transport plan has principally
to do with the integration of modes of transport. One should recognise
that walking is the glue between the different modes of transport,
so the emphasis on walking is perhaps lacking.
279. Do you think that walking and public transport
should have had a larger share of funds under the 10-year transport
plan?
(Miss Andreae) Improvements in the walking environment
need not be expensive, whether one is talking about petits
projects or whatever. Improvements to the streetscape need
not require major investment. Therefore, lots of small improvements
cumulatively can really improve the quality of spaces in which
people walk.
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