Walking Speed

Abstract

This Keynote was presented to the State of Australian Cities conference in December 2021. The focus of the conference was on “Just Transitions”. I took the opportunity to reflect on my research and experiences over a long career in town planning and transport planning which has focused on sustainable transport. The aim was to encourage discussion on how we should be rethinking Australian cities as we face the climate emergency. The intention was to tackle the conference theme by asking: “what is ‘just’ when it comes to thinking about sustainable transport in the transition to a decarbonized world”. My research has focussed on sustainable transport in a career spanning three decades. Indeed, one of the attractions in migrating to Australia was that Australian cities were very car reliant and in this way offered a live laboratory for research. The core question is whether Australian cities can be redesigned to enable daily lives to be conducted by walking rather than driving. More recently, the COVID-19 pandemic has seen a significant switch in the extent of working from home, further cementing the potential for walking speed lives. In this Keynote, I reflect on the potential for walking and cycling in Australian cities, as well as the possibilities to work from home.