On Thu, 26 Aug 2004 09:08:02 +0100, "Clive D. W. Feather"
wrote:

In article , Martin Rich
writes
The idea of segregating different types of traffic - particularly
pedestrians and cars - at different levels was favoured by planners in
the 1960s and 1970s. You can see this put into practice in the
highwalks around the Barbican. The problem is that the pedestrian
ways, far from being the attractive green lanes described on the
func-junc site, become bleak and windswept.

The village I live in is a mid-70s creation. It consists of a loop road
with lots of multi-branch cul-de-sacs stretching inwards. Between them
is a network of footpaths converging on an L-shaped "spine path" with
the village shops at the apex. The paths get plenty of use for walking
and cycling, and *do* form "attractive green lanes".

This sounds as though it's more influenced by the garden city
approach, which placed some emphasis on including footpaths between
roads, than by the notion of segregating pedestrians and vehicles at
different levels. Though it also sounds as though the planners sought
to offer separate pedestrian and vehicle routes between houses and
shops.

Footpaths are a particular feature of (most notably) Hampstead Garden
Suburb, and the garden city at Letchworth, though of course there are
plenty of footpaths in other parts of London. And they can be very
pleasant and are often well-used; my criticism was directed towards
plans which corrall *all* pedestrian traffic into sepearate, and often
elevated, walkways.

I'm drafting this off-line so can't easily check, but seem to remember
that the func-junc proposal included draconian fines for pedestrians
who strayed onto the roadway for vehicles. I'm guessing that this
isn't a feature of your village :-)

Martin