How do you design and build a street of the future in just 3 weeks?
FUTURE STREET
100 tonnes of soil, 2100 plants and 1 week to build a street of the future in the heart of Sydney, Circular Quay.
What if we were to dedicate less of our public spaces to cars and return them for people’s use? What new and exciting mobility options are arriving this century and how can we better live and enjoy our cities and streets?
These questions and more were addressed in the Future Street - a project designed to showcase innovative ideas around how landscape, infrastructure and technology can advance our cities, suburbs and towns to become more liveable, productive and sustainable. The concept represents how the future may look in response to opportunities created by the introduction of complete and green streets, by autonomous vehicles, smart city technology, urban agriculture and green infrastructure.
The street featured four stages or ‘streets’: A today street; a green street; complete street and a smart street.
‘‘Future Street started with “Today Street”, a replica of the design, delivery and organisation of streets in many cities around Australia and globally, where cars are prioritised over people and nature.
This followed through to “Green Street” where car access was removed, prioritising people, cycling and public transport with landscape and nature reintroduced. As the urban population grows and we head towards a more urbanised and vertical way of living, private green space will become less available and the importance of public open space will increase in its social and community value.
“Complete Street” envisions a balance of people and transport, featuring a fruit orchard, bike and car share options and a coffee cart to represent potential retail offerings. A complete street seeks to provide opportunities for all users, be they pedestrians, cyclists, car drivers, public transport users and operators, or delivery drivers, while incorporating green areas to create vibrant, social spaces.
The final “Smart Street” illustrates what the future of our streets might look like as technology and new transport modes enable a re-imagining of mobility. It tests a proposition about how autonomous and connected vehicles and the internet of things will unlock productive, efficient spaces in and around our streets, using technology as an enabler to create safer, more liveable public spaces.’’ - https://www.aila.org.au/THE3RDCITY/THE3RDCITY/2017_Events/Future_Street.aspx
The journey concluded with a virtual reality experience of the potential 2037 Circular Quay street
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Mm00mAfJeQc
Site
Future Street, Circular Quay Sydney
Designed & Built
2017
Team
Catherine Simpson for Place Design Group and AILA with assistance from the Place landscape team, Lucas Milner on visualisation and Chris Isles on planning; Shelley Kemp for AILA; Adam Beck, Smart Cities Council ANZ; the IOTAA; funded by the Federal Government. Built by Landscape Solutions. With planting from Andreasens Green and Lawn Solutions, furniture from Street Furniture Australia and play equipment from Playrope, electric bicycles from BYKKO, Lighting from We-ef
Who else? Goget, Buddy, Itron, Ene-Hub, Utilix, ARUP, Innovative Rigging, Biofilta, Tesla, Firefly Lighting, The Green Wall Company and Dulux.