Royal Town Planning Institute (RTPI) Scotland has joined with some of Scotland’s most influential public and third-sector organisations to call for the country to ‘walk back better’ as society reshapes following Covid-19.
In an open letter, the 27 organisations – which also include Public Health Scotland, Scottish Natural Heritage and the University of Edinburgh – say that they are working to ensure that people and walking are put first in national and local planning developments.
The organisations involved in the letter comprise the National Walking Strategy Delivery Forum which has been tasked with implementing the Scottish Government’s ambitious National Walking Strategy.
Director of RTPI Scotland Craig McLaren is Chair of the Delivery Forum. He said: "Following hot on the heels of the launch of Plan the World We Need, the RTPI’s campaign calling for a greener, place-based recovery from the Covid-19 pandemic, we’re delighted to be a signatory to this letter.
"As we look towards a post Covid-19 world, we want to see a commitment to walking and cycling embedded into how we design our towns and cities with walking environments placed at the heart of the recovery.
"There are a number of real opportunities to do this through the new National Planning Framework, the National Transport Strategy and any post Covid-19 approaches used to stimulate a green recovery."
The Delivery Forum says that it hopes that many of the significant changes already visible within our towns and cities – such as the temporary introduction of wider pavements, closed roads for traffic to encourage walking and cycling and reductions in speed limits – will not be seen as just temporary measures.
It says it will also advocate for better, safer walking environments and safer urban spaces, as well as promoting walking as part of public transport journeys and as an important way to look after physical and mental wellbeing.
- The 27 organisations calling for Scotland to ‘walk back better’ are: Active Scotland, Cairngorm National Park Authority, Central Scotland Green Network Trust, COSLA, Cycling Scotland, The University of Edinburgh (OPENspace and PAHRC), Forest and Land Scotland, Greenspace Scotland, Living Streets Scotland, Loch Lomond & Trossachs National Park, Mobility and Access Committee for Scotland , Paths for All, Planning Aid Scotland, Public Health Scotland, Ramblers Scotland, Regional Transport Partnerships, RTPI Scotland, SAMH, Scottish Canals, Scottish Land and Estates, Scottish Natural Heritage, Scotland’s Towns Partnership, sportscotland, Sustrans Scotland, Transport Scotland, Visit Scotland, and VOCAL.
- More information on Scotland’s National Walking Strategy can be found here: http://stepchangescot.scot/
