Watch this space: the jury is still out on the effectiveness of shared space designs

At the LTT-sponsored Shared Space conference in London last week delegates heard that a great deal more research needs to be done before the shared space concept can be fully evaluated, with worries about the potential road safety impact of such schemes being of particular concern and the needs of blind and partially sighted pedestrians remaining a key issue.

Rik Thomas

18 December 2009

Groups representing blind and partially-sighted people remain vehemently opposed to schemes incorporating "shared surface" elements

There is a great thirst amongst transport professionals for more knowledge about shared space urban design schemes at the moment and this was aptly illustrated by the sheer size of audience at the LTT-sponsored conference held in London last week – with over 200 delegates gathering to pick the brains of the leading experts in the field. Not that even the experts know everything in this rapidly-evolving field, however. For example, according to Stuart Reid, sustainable transport...