Based on the Dutch concept, woonerf meaning 'living environment', set up in the latter half of the 20th century, Home Zones replicate this concept to create residential areas where street space is shared between pedestrians, cyclists and motorists. Vehicle speeds and numbers are low, and through design techniques, drivers are imbued with a sense of guest status, rather than priority status. The Zones are linked to surrounding walking, cycling and public transport routes decreasing dependency on the car. This concept was officially launched in 1999 and councils were invited to nominate Home Zone projects for a monitoring and evaluation study taking place over six years. It included a series of before and after surveys and monitored the process of scheme development. These highlighted the importance of community involvement including children, the difficulties of acquiring and synchronising funding, the importance of professional involvement at allstages, lack of significant increase in community use of shared space, issues relating to use of shared space and other difficulties for disabled people, and the lack of understanding of Home Zone status by many members of the community. Recommendations covering these and other issues have beenput forward for future consideration.
Abstract