ADVERTISEMENT

According to the World Health Organization, the environment where we live determines almost 24% of our health status. No wonder adults living in and children growing up in urban settings are increasingly exposed to high levels of air and noise pollution, tend to have less contact with nature, have poorer nutrition and even lack physical activity.

Luckily, good urban planning can not only prevent these risks caused by urbanization but even improve our quality of life. Smart urban planning can make busy public areas natural and peaceful spaces capable of reducing stress, promoting sustainability and a sense of well-being.

There’s this corner of Reddit known as Urban Planning that is dedicated to collecting and sharing the best and worst examples of urban planning. From entire city infrastructures to small details like stands for bikers to grab onto while waiting for the light, there are many things that influence how we move around and feel in cities that you probably haven’t noticed before.

Below, we wrapped up some of the most interesting examples.

#1

The Dutch Prime Minister On His Way Home After A Day Of Work - Front Page, 50k Upvotes

The Dutch Prime Minister On His Way Home After A Day Of Work - Front Page, 50k Upvotes

TownPro Report

Add photo comments
POST
carolyngerbrands avatar
Caro Caro
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

There are many photos and film where you seen him on his bike on the way to a meeting, wearing jeans, sneakers, on his bike and munching an apple. Great !

View More Replies...
View more commentsArrow down menu
#2

Interesting Concept

Interesting Concept

erinroseglass Report

Add photo comments
POST
mikedelancey avatar
Two_rolling_black_eyes
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I went to college in a place that was primarily a mining town. The stuff aimed at the college kids (Taco Bell) closed down when the bars did. The stores and public services aimed at the miners and their families (grocery store, public library, etc) were open 24 hours a day because so were the mines. There were 16 year old kids working on their GEDs at 2am after getting off work and mom's picking up a replacement pair of steel toed boots in the middle of the night to get back to work after the old pair saved her toes . When I graduated and moved to the big city, I was genuinely surprised to discover Famous Footwear and the local library would close at 8pm. A larger percent of people worked weird shifts in my small college town but volume wise there are a lot more people in a city of 1 million who don't work 9-5. 24 hour Walmarts made many of those businessed moot but I still wonder why you can only improve yourself at a library when the sun is up.

View More Replies...
View more commentsArrow down menu
#3

Hr Does Have Some Good Wants

Hr Does Have Some Good Wants

Jan Lehnardt Report

Add photo comments
POST
wianjama avatar
Rissie
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

These two absolutely don't exclude one another, the need each other. Self driving cars can couple where possible and be not just used by one person for "the last few miles" into sleeper towns for inatance or when privacy is preferable. While larger public transport vehicles are there for the high volume routes (routes between sleeper town and cities and cities and cities) and low capacity routes (inner city)

View More Replies...
View more commentsArrow down menu

In a previous in-depth interview, we spoke with Lisa Yaszek about urbanization and the challenges it poses to our lives. Yaszek is a Regents Professor of Science Fiction Studies at Georgia Tech, where she researches and teaches science fiction as a global language crossing centuries, continents, and cultures.

The professor explained that the traditional advantage of urban life is that cities are engines of technoscientific development and cultural exchange. “That is true now more than ever, as we see new megacities of 10 million or more people springing up around the world,” she added.

#5

It Really Be Like That

It Really Be Like That

reddit.com Report

Add photo comments
POST
markberry1968 avatar
Mark Berry
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Arlington Texas has the Dallas Cowboys Stadium which cost 1.15 Billion USD. 325 Million came from the taxpayers. Yet we're the largest city in the US without public transit.

View More Replies...
View more commentsArrow down menu
#6

Berlin Is Planning A Car-Free Area Larger Than Manhattan

Berlin Is Planning A Car-Free Area Larger Than Manhattan

[deleted] Report

In fact, a whopping 4.2 billion inhabitants which make up 55% of the world's population today live in cities. Experts are convinced that this trend will continue.

ADVERTISEMENT

But since the development of large industrial cities in the 1800s, the downsides of urban living have become increasingly evident. “Cities organized around factories and power plants tend to be environmental disasters, with clouds of pollution sometimes literally blotting out the sun and preventing the growth of anything green on the ground,” Yaszek told us.

ADVERTISEMENT
#9

The Elevated Freeway Got Torn Down. Seoul

The Elevated Freeway Got Torn Down. Seoul

beunaise Report

There are more downsides to urban living. It turns out that industrial and post-industrial cities tend to attract disproportionate numbers of both highly skilled workers (often in finance or business) and unskilled laborers (often in factories or domestic work). “As such, they make evident the very real and increasing gap between the rich and the poor,” the professor noted.

#10

A Stand For Bikers To Hold On To While Waiting For The Traffic Lights In Sweden.

A Stand For Bikers To Hold On To While Waiting For The Traffic Lights In Sweden.

fyhr100 Report

#11

Street In Utrecht, The Netherlands: 1969 - 2017

Street In Utrecht, The Netherlands: 1969 - 2017

fyhr100 Report

Add photo comments
POST
laura_ketteridge avatar
Laura Ketteridge
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Less noise pollution, less air pollution, better air quality, lower temperatures due to tree shade, and just a much nicer place to live in.

View more commentsArrow down menu
ADVERTISEMENT
#12

Tweet About The Lack Of On-Street Parking In Japan

Tweet About The Lack Of On-Street Parking In Japan

pkknight85 Report

Add photo comments
POST
simon_37 avatar
The IRS
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Yes it does. This is someone who has never been there. I lived in Tokyo for two years. It 100% happens.

View More Replies...
View more commentsArrow down menu

Moreover, cities are often surrounded by suburbs with single-family homes. In theory, they offer a better balance between nature and technology. But in practice, the situation is very different. Yaszek explained that suburbs have their own problems: “Their emphasis on visual uniformity is often part of a larger tendency toward cultural segregation, and the need to drive everywhere—including in and out of the city—only adds to our current environmental problems.”

#13

Me Irl

Me Irl

smouse26 Report

Add photo comments
POST
robert-thornburrow avatar
Robert T
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I'm not keen on pedestrian crossing on the entries/exits to the roundabout. On a busy roundabout you are watching several other cars and then out of the corner of your eye you spot a pedestrian wanting to cross the road. At least this one has good visibility, but locally we have one that doesn't and it would be better with the crossings further away from the roundabout.

View More Replies...
View more commentsArrow down menu
#14

Trinity College Dublin Replaces Manicured Lawn With Wildflower Meadow To Increase Biodiversity

Trinity College Dublin Replaces Manicured Lawn With Wildflower Meadow To Increase Biodiversity

irishliam Report

Add photo comments
POST
marionconnolly avatar
Marion Connolly
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

After: https://www.irishtimes.com/news/science/trinity-college-s-wildflower-meadow-what-it-was-trying-to-achieve-1.4675965

View More Replies...
View more commentsArrow down menu
#15

Holiday Gridlock...

Holiday Gridlock...

mhusker Report

Add photo comments
POST
wintereleven avatar
Winter Eleven
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

As soon as you build sidewalks! And bike lanes! With a fence or something so we don't get hit by cars

View More Replies...
View more commentsArrow down menu

Today, the harm that historic urban development practices have caused to the physical world around us is more evident than ever. However, the professor believes that we can’t simply undo it. Yet, she remains positive: “I do believe we can go forward in new ways,” Yaszek added. According to her, we can always learn from our mistakes and rehabilitate the spaces we’ve already created, rather than simply abandoning or bulldozing them.

#16

Pedestrianizing Broadway

Pedestrianizing Broadway

JSadikKhan Report

Add photo comments
POST
tonkroon avatar
Ton Kroon
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

It wasn't the global start. It was already happening in other parts of the world.

View More Replies...
View more commentsArrow down menu
ADVERTISEMENT
See Also on Bored Panda
#17

My City Has Been Removing Some Street Parking And Making These "Parklets". It's A Much Better Use Of Space.

My City Has Been Removing Some Street Parking And Making These "Parklets". It's A Much Better Use Of Space.

MajorChances Report

Add photo comments
POST
jcook_1 avatar
Flying Panda
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Before making this transformation, you have to build a good public transportation system. You are making the public walk miles from their parking lot to these areas. These little parklets are cute and everything but build a solid public transportation system first.

View More Replies...
View more commentsArrow down menu

Yaszek argues that we can do this “by either inventing new or recovering old technoscientific practices that better respect the coincidence between nature and culture, and by practicing a different kind of urban design that springs from the lived reality of city-dwellers, rather than the abstract theorizing of planners and developers who often live in spaces far removed from the cities they design."

#19

1 Car Parking Space = 10 Bike Spaces, Spotted In Stuttgart, Home Of The Car

1 Car Parking Space = 10 Bike Spaces, Spotted In Stuttgart, Home Of The Car

mildawwwg Report

#20

Closing Central Madrid To Cars Resulted In 9.5% Boost To Retail Spending, Finds Bank Analysis | Forbes

Closing Central Madrid To Cars Resulted In 9.5% Boost To Retail Spending, Finds Bank Analysis | Forbes

killroy200 Report

Add photo comments
POST
guineveremariesmith avatar
Gwyn
Community Member
1 year ago (edited) DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

That kind of makes sense? You want to enjoy your shopping trip and if the environment is nice to be in you will walk around and you'll browse longer and maybe even buy more stuff! Otherwise you get what you need and get out.

View more commentsArrow down menu
#21

What Would Happen If Americans Were In Charge Of Rebuilding Notre Dame

What Would Happen If Americans Were In Charge Of Rebuilding Notre Dame

jameane Report

#22

Nobody: Southwest Us Developers:

Nobody: Southwest Us Developers:

andamancrake Report

Add photo comments
POST
mikedelancey avatar
Two_rolling_black_eyes
Community Member
1 year ago (edited) DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

This is common everywhere and its called coving. The modern version was pioneered in Minneapolis, MN, USA and spread. The original idea was to decrease the cost of building roads and utilities (1st generation saved ~20% in costs). Its evolved to cram the maximum number of homes into the smallest amount of space and make homeowner feel like they both have more land than the actually have and feel more secure (no one can see in your windows from another house). 4/5th generation models save close to 60% of construction costs. There is an entire branch of data science and specialized software designed to make these new neighborhoods. Badly made ones are obvious before you hit the first intersection. When buying a new home, use that street crossing as an indicator. If it feels wonky, there's a good chance the developer cut other corners so your basement will leak in a couple years and you'll hear the neighbors having sex.

View More Replies...
View more commentsArrow down menu
#23

In Paris, The Financial District Is Isolated From The Old City Center, Allowing It To Keep Its Appearance

In Paris, The Financial District Is Isolated From The Old City Center, Allowing It To Keep Its Appearance

MikeFrench98 Report

Add photo comments
POST
nicoleweymann avatar
Nicole Weymann
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

After millennia of people using underground Paris as quarries vast parts of the city would make a new skyscraper collapse into a sinkhole before the tenth story was finished. Not that I mind Paris keeping its charming face, but "allowed" is far too generous a term. (one example: https://parisianfields.com/2015/09/13/a-city-built-on-air/). i believe Rome, for one, has a similar problem.

View More Replies...
View more commentsArrow down menu
#24

Space Required To Transport 48 People (A Car Is A Car Is A Car)

Space Required To Transport 48 People (A Car Is A Car Is A Car)

dotcoma Report

Add photo comments
POST
totengruft avatar
Alexandru Bucur
Community Member
1 year ago (edited) DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Ugh, I hate this false equivalence. It's not a question of one or the other, since we absolutely need BOTH mass transit AND electric, autonomous cars, because there is no way you can build mass transit to absolutely everywhere, but an autonomous car can serve multiple people - instead of sitting idle in the garage, it can work as an autonomous taxi - this way it brings in money for the owner and more importantly it means some people might choose to be car-less if they can just call one through an app and not have to worry about driving, parking or maintaining it...

View More Replies...
View more commentsArrow down menu
ADVERTISEMENT
See Also on Bored Panda
#25

Toronto Wants To Kill The "Smart City" Forever: After The Failure Of Google's Techno-Utopian Sidewalk Labs Project, Urban Planners Are Focusing On Green Space, Livability And Affordable Housing

Toronto Wants To Kill The "Smart City" Forever: After The Failure Of Google's Techno-Utopian Sidewalk Labs Project, Urban Planners Are Focusing On Green Space, Livability And Affordable Housing

UpboatBrigadier Report

#26

Move People Not Cars!

Move People Not Cars!

_73r0_ Report

Add photo comments
POST
debsbirthday avatar
ThisIsNotTheOneYou'reLookinFor
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I guess cars in 1950 and on can only go in straight lines but in 1920 they could go curvy. Current bicycles are ridden by drunks apparently.

View More Replies...
View more commentsArrow down menu
#27

Sad.

Sad.

reddit.com Report

Add photo comments
POST
clementd_ avatar
Clément D.
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

What are these parking spots for? You park, and you go... where? Genuine question

View More Replies...
View more commentsArrow down menu
#28

This United Airlines Tourism Pitch For America Is Horrifically Unappealing. (In Sydney, Australia)

This United Airlines Tourism Pitch For America Is Horrifically Unappealing. (In Sydney, Australia)

MagnesiumOvercast Report

#30

I Don't Know How That Feels To Live In Downtown Cleveland, But It Definitely Looks Like A Giant Parking Lot.

I Don't Know How That Feels To Live In Downtown Cleveland, But It Definitely Looks Like A Giant Parking Lot.

PotatoesAreDangerous Report

Add photo comments
POST
coreysmith_3 avatar
Corey Smith
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Downtown Cleveland is now a vibrant residential area and many of the parking lots in this old picture are now gone. There is now significant greenspace and many new hotels and apartments. There are several high capacity (and some free) public transit lines, both light rail and green-fuel buses that serve the area. But you do you BP.

View More Replies...
View more commentsArrow down menu

Note: this post originally had 59 images. It’s been shortened to the top 30 images based on user votes.