Re: A New Word: Home Zone
From: Fred H. Olson (fholsoncohousing.org)
Date: Sat, 17 Apr 1999 09:58:05 -0500
On Sat, 17 Apr 1999, Sharon Villines wrote:

> Home zones are residential streets in which motor vehicles take
> second place to people. 

"Home zones" is a new term to me, tho I am somewhat familiar with 
the term "woonerf".  "Traffic calming", a term that is somewhat more
general, is more common here.  Whatever the term used, it's a
great community building idea.

I was on a parkway evaluation group last year that was considering traffic
calming measures to slow traffic around our parks e.g.- traffic circles,
speed humps, constrictions, parking bays, even longitudinal lines that
make drivers feel the road is narrower.  The general conclusion is that
people drive at a speed that they percieve is reasonable and safe based on
their perception of the roadway design and environment with little regard
to posted speeds.  So the task becomes attaining a design that drivers
perceive as having slower "reasonable"  speeds. 

In our attempt here in Minneapolis to organize a "retrofit cohousing
community ** , I have hopes / dreams that someday our alley and street
will become a home zone. 

**  "retrofit cohousing community" is the term I advocate for a
cohousing-like community that evolves in an existing residential
neighborhood.   See:

http://freenet.msp.mn.us/housing/cohousing/retrofit

I plan to go on the Cohousing tour to Denmark this June and spend a day or
two in Stockholm as well.  I'd love to see examples of home zones.
If anyone has knowledge of specific examples there, please write to me.

Fred

--
Fred H. Olson  fholson [at] cohousing.org    Minneapolis,MN   55411  
(612)588-9532  Amateur radio: WB0YQM          List manager of:
Cohousing-L  See http://www.cohousing.org and Nbhd-tc --  Twin 
Cities Neighborhood issues list.  See http://freenet.msp.mn.us


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