In parts of Sydney, families occupy half the apartments and many value their convenient location. Yet, despite a surge in development, most apartments are one or two bedrooms and not family-friendly.
Three-time British senior all-around medallist and gymnast Isabella Cesar heralds the advent of the Games in Birmingham.
David Warren | Alamy
Hosting the Games has seem Birmingham dotted with new infrastructure and amenities. But the city’s pioneering transformation began over a 100 years ago.
Australia’s big cities have grown rapidly and strains are showing. Yet the state of the urban environment has been rated good and stable due to local and state responses to these challenges.
Opera Australia’s production, Aida, at the Arts Centre Melbourne.
AAP Image/Luis Ascui
Two reports — from think tank A New Approach and ex-Grattan Institute director John Daley — say Australian art and culture hasn’t advocated for itself effectively. But we need to try something new.
A global study of 117 cities finds Australian capitals have fairly poor access by car. Public transport, cycling and walking access is better than in the US, but not as good as in Europe and China.
Cities around the world are reducing traffic speeds and improving access to local services and activities by public transport, cycling and walking. They are now reaping the many ‘slow city’ benefits.
The push for 30km/h speed limits is not about revenue-raising or anti-cars. Even a seemingly small decrease from 40km/h to 30km/h makes a huge difference to the safety and liveability of local streets.
The pervasive impacts of infrastructure projects on public health are often overlooked. New research is teasing out the many ways Melbourne’s level-crossing removals will affect people’s health.
Walking all parts of Melbourne before and after the pandemic hit was eye-opening. It brought home just how much change is possible if we wish for a better, more sustainable way of living.
If Australia created more age-friendly neighbourhoods — which really are more liveable for everyone — then we wouldn’t have to rely so heavily on underfunded, substandard aged-care homes.
The differences in sentiment in areas of high and low neighbourhood amenity have been clear under Melbourne’s tough COVID restrictions. It’s further evidence of the impacts of inequity on well-being.
Australia lacks a coherent national approach to planning where settlement and growth happens. It’s time to take stock of our cities and regions and work together to improve outcomes across the nation.
Do we really want to go back to daily commuting as the default way of working?
David Moir/AAP
The change in our behaviour in response to COVID-19 has created an opportunity to build on this moment and transform our local neighbourhoods into vibrant mixed-use centres of activity.
We are all finding out about neighbourhood liveability as we stay home for the coronavirus lockdown. What we learn about local strengths and weaknesses can help us improve our communities in future.
The neighbourhoods of Paris, Barcelona and Amsterdam with densities 3-5 times those of Melbourne and Sydney offer an insight into how we could transform our cities for the better.
The benefits of ‘superblocks’ for Barcelona include better health, access to green space and other public space, and more transport-related physical activity.
Orbon Alija/iStock
The Spanish city is remaking urban neighbourhoods by limiting through traffic in superblocks that give priority to pedestrians and street activities, not cars.
Where’s the shade? Trees are not an immediate or whole answer to keeping cool.
Cameron Tonkinwise
Trees and the shade they provide are one of the best ways of cooling cities. But they also present challenges that are best resolved by managing this shared resource as part of an urban commons.