Cohousing-L Mailing List: A New Word: Home Zone

[Sharon Villines (sharonvillines]

The following word appeared on my Saturday issue of World Wide Words, an 
e-newsletter on definitions and origins of words:

Home zone
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Home zones are residential streets in which motor vehicles take
second place to people. They've been a feature of some parts of
continental Europe for 25 years, but have only recently begun to
be discussed seriously in Britain. The government has recently
asked local authorities to nominate neighbourhoods to be turned
into such zones. The term is still uncommon in the UK, at the
moment mostly being the jargon of traffic engineers and local
environmental campaigners. Similar ideas have been put forward in
other English-speaking countries, but the term is even less well
known than in Britain. In continental home zones, pedestrians and
cyclists have legal right of way, and vehicles are restricted to
not much more than walking pace. The distinction between vehicle
and pedestrian areas is deliberately blurred; trees, seating and
play areas are added so that the streets become open spaces for
walking, sitting, playing and talking. Home zones are marked with
an internationally recognised sign showing a walker, a house, a
child with a ball and a distant car. The word is the English
equivalent (what grammarians call a calque or loan translation) of
the Dutch name for the system, 'woonerf'.

What would Home Zones be like? For residents, parents, children,
pets, strollers and promenaders in the spring sunshine they would
be delightful. Queues of cars would be unlikely to form, because
cars would avoid them unless absolutely necessary.
                                         [_The Times_, Jan. 1998]

Home Zones have existed in many other European countries for
years, and play a key role in improving the quality of life for
residents in towns and cities, reducing the demand for new housing
in rural areas and cutting down on commuting.
                                [_Manchester Forum_, Summer 1998]

The source is:

WORLD WIDE WORDS          ISSUE 140         Saturday 17 April 1999
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>From Michael Quinion                        Thornbury, Bristol, UK
Sent every Saturday to more than 4,700 subscribers in 87 countries
Web: <http://www.quinion.com/words/>   E-mail: <words [at] quinion.com>
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Sharon Villines
Synergy Cohousing
http://www.cohousing.net