Greater Geelong

Introduction

Over the past few years, many of our key strategic documents have addressed walkability. Issues raised included continuity of paths and routes to key pieces of infrastructure, maintenance and structural integrity, lack of footpaths, accessibility of the current stock, as well as the permeability and legibility of walking environments.

Over the past few years the City of Greater Geelong has been working through the issues raised by problem solving in place, with people.

The following work has been completed.

The Journey to School

'The Journey to School' video encourages Geelong families to walk, 'scoot', skate or cycle to school.
The video highlights the option of driving part of the way and walking or riding the rest.

‘The Journey to School’ video is the result of the Streets Ahead and TravelSmart partnership between the City of Greater Geelong, VicHealth and the Department of Transport.

This is the final part of a local campaign urging parents to consider the benefits of walking to school, through distribution of car safety signs, fridge magnets and booklets with tips for safe and active travel.

The video was filmed around Drysdale Primary School and features local children walking or riding to school or ‘parking part way’ - and talking about the benefits.

Leopold Strategic Footpath Network

This work uses urban design tools for assessing footpath access and equity.

The work teases out qualities of a strategic footpath network and analyses priority routes in a peri-urban setting

The work provides a Toolkit illustrating key components of a ‘strategic footpath’.

Along with Leopold Strategic Footpath Network Health Impact Assessment, and Leopold Community Hub, this work won the Planning Institute Awards [Vic] for Excellence for Social and Community Planning 2008.

Leopold Strategic Footpath Network Health Impact Assessment.

This work is a formal Health Impact Assessment, addressing the health impacts of walking, or not in a peri-urban environment and assessing the efficacy of the Strategic Footpath Network proposal.

This work analyses the health impacts of the proposed Leopold Strategic Footpath to ensure otherwise unintended consequences are addressed before the network is built.

Along with Leopold Strategic Footpath Network Health Impact Assessment, and Leopold Community Hub, this work won the Planning Institute Awards for Excellence [Vic] for Social and Community Planning 2008.

Clause 56 Walkability Toolkit

This work provides a platform for best practice design of liveable sustainable and walkable communities.

It provides tools for analysis and good design of proposed walking environments suggesting a range of amenity and that can support people of all ages and abilities walking in a changing climate.

This work extends the Planning Schemes minimum provisions [mandated footpath widths] for walkability to include seating, lighting, shade, interest, destinations. It won the Planning Institute Awards [Vic] for Excellence for Health and Well being 2008.

Guidelines for Walkable Coastal Environments

This work takes a problem solving approach to access issues in coastal communities. It provides environmentally sensitive, inclusive design Guidelines appropriate for coastal walking environments and footpaths.

This work was designed in conjunction with older residents of the coastal communities of Indented Head, St Leonards and Portarlington and the Disability Advisory Group.

This work and the communities that helped design it won the Victorian Coastal Awards for Excellence 2009 for Planning.

New Work from Geelong to look out for…

Drysdale Clifton Springs Active Transport Network [Due out in September 2009]
Corio Norlane Active Transport Network [Due early 2010]
Cloverdale Walkability Project [Due early 2010]
Other areas under review include Barwon Heads and Ocean Grove, Bell Post Hill and Bell Park, Geelong East and Grovedale.

Presentations on this work

Work on walkability from Geelong has been promoted in a range of professional and community forums in the interests of promoting a better understanding of walkability, participatory strategies for developing more walkable communities, and encouraging a broader audience for Toolkits and concepts developed in the work.

Australian Association of Gerontology [Vic Division] Creating environments for positive ageing [April 2008]
MAV Postive Ageing Seminar [Brimbank, June 2008]
Preparing For Change In An Ageing Society, [Melbourne, August 2008]
Global Conference on Aging in Montreal [Montreal, September 2009]
Walk 21 Barcelona [Barcelona, October 2008]
Healthy Cities Conference [Brisbane, March2009]
Planning Institute of Australia National Congress [Darwin, April 2009]

Forthcoming papers or Presentations…

International Public Works Conference [September 2009]
Walk 21 New York [New York,October 2009]
State of Australian Cities Conference [Perth November 2009]
International Conference of Towns and Cities [Geelong, October 2009]

Heart Foundation Awards

As a package, this platform of work won the Heart Foundation State Award 2008, the State Category Award for Implementation of Plans and Policies to Support Heart Heath 2008, and was highly commended in the Heart Foundation National Awards 2008.

Active Transport

Geelong is active in promoting active transport within communities. Current active transport projects include;

Streets Ahead

Streets Ahead is being conducted across a few suburbs in Geelong. It seeks to increase the number of children aged 4-12 moving around their neighbourhoods on their feet or their own wheels, rather than being driven short distances.

The project engages schools and the local community in finding ways to increase active travel, and is funded by VicHealth to mid 2011.

TravelSmart

TravelSmart is an initiative to encourage more children to actively travel to school. I t provides a life style choice for families and allows them to think about their attitudes and values around car travel and car dependency.

The project focuses on fun and creative ways to engage children to walk, cycle, scooter or car pool to school more often.

There are seven schools in the Grovedale, Belmont, Highton areas that are currently participating in the TravelSmart project, which is due to finish in June 2010.

TravelSmart is funded by the State Government’s Department of Transport and the City of Greater Geelong.