Slow Cities: Conquering our Speed Addiction for Health and Sustainability

Slow Cities: Conquering Our Speed Addiction for Health and Sustainability demonstrates, counterintuitively, that reducing the speed of travel within cities saves time for residents and creates more sustainable, liveable, prosperous and healthy environments.

This book examines the ways individuals and societies became dependent on transport modes that required investment in speed. Using research from multiple disciplinary perspectives, the book demonstrates ways in which human, economic and environmental health are improved with a slowing of city transport. It identifies effective methods, strategies and policies for decreasing the speed of motorised traffic and encouraging a modal shift to walking, cycling and public transport. This book also offers a holistic assessment of the impact of speed on daily behaviours and life choices, and shows how a move to slow down will - perhaps surprisingly - increase accessibility to the city services and activities that support healthy, sustainable lives and cities.

Includes cases from cities in North and South America, Europe, Asia, Africa and AustralasiaUses evidence-based research to support arguments about the benefits of slowing city transportAdopts a broad view of health, including the health of individuals, neighbourhoods and communities as well as economic health and environmental healthIncludes text boxes, diagrams and photos illustrating the slowing of transport in cities throughout the world, and a list of references including both academic sources and valuable websites

Part 1: Speed

Chapter 1: Introduction: changing cultures of speed

Chapter 2: The benefits of speed for individuals: real or illusory?

Chapter 3: The benefits of speed for economy and society: challenging the dominant narrative

Chapter 4: The ‘slow paradox’: how speed steals our time

Part 2: Health

Chapter 5: Keeping the doctor away: Promoting human health through slower travel

Chapter 6: Advancing environmental health in future ‘slow cities’

Chapter 7: Slower, richer, fairer: better economic health in ‘slow cities’

Part 3: Strategies

Chapter 8: Hit the brakes: slowing existing motorised traffic

Chapter 9: Slow modes, slow design, slow spaces: new goals for traffic management and planning

Chapter 10: A new vision for the city: transforming behaviours, values and cultures

Chapter 11: Conclusion: re-imagining the city for a healthier future