Janette Sadik-Khan on the Value of Our Streets + PlaNYC

“A lot can be done in 4 years to change completely a city and make it more sustainable." Janette Sadik-Khan discusses how PlaNYC used the cities’ growth “as a lever to modernise the basic systems”—like transportation, environment, energy and housing—to improve the overall urban environment for the American culture metropolis. It’s aim to create a more sustainable city was tackled by challenging a series of long-held practices in city government and changing how various municipal departments function by undoing the silos they tend to work in. It was common that departments like transportation, environmental protection, or city planning didn’t necessarily talking to each other, let alone work together, that ultimately inhibits cities from developing more sustainable practices. The main goals for the Sustainable Streets Program were greatly inspired by Jan Ghel to create more efficient mobility, to focus on safety, and most importantly, to treat the streets as the valuable places that they are. Prior to 2007, she pointed out how NYC reflected a “1950s planning ethos of making cities adapt to exponentially greater volumes of cars”, criticising its “singular engineering focus which sacrificed open space, greenery and safety”. This practice is largely seen in cities everywhere, all grappling with the reliance on traffic engineering that has left urban environments poorly designed to meet current needs. The first step towards this is rooted in prioritizing safety of pedestrians, making them want to use these spaces. She uses examples such as pedestrianising Broadway and other plazas that promote more safety and designated bike lanes that provide both more visibly and efficient mobility—all contributing to a safer and more sustainable city. The former Commissioner of the New York City Department of Transportation (2007-2013) under Mayor Michael Bloomberg, Janette Sadik-Khan was instrumental to the revitiliazation of the city's streets. She is a leading voice on transportation policy for her transformative redesign on New York City's streets and the effective speed at which she was able to accomplish this. Janette Sadik-Khan spoke at reSITE 2012 --- reSITE is an international platform connecting people and ideas to improve the urban environment. We work at the intersection of architecture, urbanism, politics, culture, and economics. We feature thought leaders whose work pushes the boundaries on how we build, design, regenerate and create life in cities, and frame them through many lenses, convening them in one place. We act as a catalyst for social action and innovative leadership. We encourage an exchange of ideas about making cities more livable, competitive, and resilient. We protect and promote public space, architecture, and sustainable development in cities. All to make our cities more livable, competitive, resilient, inclusive, mobile, and designed with humans in mind. Listen to our podcast, Design and the City, on the link below or wherever you get your podcasts. ▫️www.reSITE.org/podcast Learn More + Connect with Us! www.reSITE.org ▫️  / resitefestival   ▫️  / resite_   ▫️  / resite_   ▫️  / resite-festival