The feasibility of woonerf and winkelerf in New Zealand

Abstract

Woonerf - The Dutch word meaning residential yard. The Woonerf is the central concept at this report. The Woonerf is an environment in which pedestrians and cars share the same street space, but where through design and legislation the balance of power has reversed in the pedestrians favour. We've come to believe that our streets are there for only our cars, and have forgotten the role of the street as space for people. The street traditionally has been a neutral territory where people can meet, children can learn and play, and street life is generated. It can be a unified space between the individual physical elements within the space and can become the central focus of attention. The perceptions of common territory recognition of the shared interests of people using the street, and is fundamental to the concept of neighbourhood (Bruce Steele). Many of our streets, in their present form, lack spatial identify. Modernist architecture discarded the street in favour of universal space between individual architectural objects and reinforced by the influence of the car on our environment, and the control of our environment by agencies and ordinances which favour cars and are remote from resident, hence restricting the effort for improvement severely.