Slow Cities
This chapter outlines the widespread acceptance of speed as a positive aspect of urban
transport during the 20th century, along with a growing recognition in recent decades
that speed may not provide the advantages that have long been assumed. In 21st century
urban planning, no longer are higher speeds always seen as the main objective. New goals
are increasingly recognised as being more important: accessibility, liveability, economic
vitality, child-friendliness, sustainability and health. The concept of ‘health’ in this book
applies to human health, as well as economic health and environmental health. We ex-
plain how all of these types of health can be enhanced using the simple strategy of slowing
city transport. A brief history of increases in transport speed is followed by a discussion of
the evolution of the culture of speed in modern societies, to a level that can be compared
to an addiction. An important aspect of the culture of speed is the story of motordom, the
grouping of automobile clubs, car dealers and car manufacturers that began in the United
States in the 1920s. A concerted campaign by motordom comprehensively dismissed the
public’s negative views on speed. We then outline how, from the 1980s onwards, new
thinking began to emerge about motorised city transport, in which the value of slowing it
down became more widely discussed. We provide examples of various slow movements
that have emerged since the 1980s. While some citizens and policy-makers may question
(or even ridicule) the idea of slow movements, we reflect on where the ‘fast movement’
has taken us over the last 100 years. This chapter concludes with a preview of the chapters
and parts of the book.
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