The last number of weeks have brought great change all over the world. City life has changed drastically as well. Streets are quiet, stores are shut, vehicle traffic has nearly vanished, buses and trains are almost empty. And pedestrians are veering onto the street as they try to maintain a safe distance from others.
In some parts of the world, folks are on total lockdown and are prohibited to be outdoors.
Here in North America, we still have some freedoms to use parks, public spaces and streets, as long as a safe distance is kept. This is a challenge that cities are now faced with: How might we allow people to still enjoy the spaces of the city while being responsible and safe.
John talks with Mike Lydon, a past podcast guest, who has been keeping a close watch on how some cities are proactively responding to COVID-19. Many cities are taking action, including:
- Cambridge, Massachusetts
- Schaerbeek, Belgium
- Ottawa, Ontario
- Grenoble, France
- London, UK
- Vancouver, British Columbia
- Denver, Colorado
- Vienna, Austria
- Bogata, Columbia
- And here in Calgary, Alberta
Resources
- Follow Mike Lydon on Twitter
- Check out his latest blogs posts about COVID19 Streets
