Benefits related to liveability
An ECOURBAN development offers reduced air and noise pollution and a lower risk of injury by traffic accidents. There is more space for people in an attractive, quiet, safe and healthy environment (car-free streets and squares, a great variety of green spaces), promoting a slower-paced, more relaxed, healthier, sustainable lifestyle. This allows more personal interaction with neighbours resulting also in the presence of more people in public space day and night thus creating a greater sense of community and possibly resulting in lower crime rates.
Close proximity to most necessary facilities in mixed-use areas provides shorter commutes to jobs or to school, for shopping, recreation, to public transport stops, etc., thus saving time. A variety of green areas (an important factor for residents’ satisfaction), integrated into as well as in the surroundings of compact settlements, is easily accessible. A balanced social mix and social services for all groups of the inhabitants fosters their well-being and solar architecture provides convenient temperatures and good levels of daylight for high indoor comfort.
These benefits can be experienced by all people, but they are of greater importance for some individual groups: ECOURBAN patterns privilege non-drivers (who are disadvantaged by car-dependent transport and land use patterns), increasing their mobility and accessibility options. An internal pathway system free of private cars and barriers but with sufficient social control combined with the short distances, creates an attractive safe environment for children (to play safely outdoors and travel on their own) as well as for the mobility of seniors and the handicapped.
Benefits from creating appropriate patterns for sustainable transport related to costs
The more a municipality commits itself to public transport infrastructure, the less will be spent on transport overall. Conversely, the more a settlement is built around car dependence, the more of it’s wealth is wasted on just getting around (Newman et al 2001).
ECOURBAN settlements have lower investment costs
- for infrastructure (streets, sewers, water pipes etc.) because of compact development and
- for parking facilities due to reduced car dependence and thus a lower level of motorisation.
ECOURBAN settlements also feature lower operating and usage costs
- for heating and lighting, because of more compact building structures and due to solar gains and high insulation and
- for transportation due to minimised trip lengths (short distances), the resulting higher share of walking and cycling trips as well as an efficient public transport system (lowest costs for car-free households).
Benefits for the (natural) environment
Besides actively involved human actors there is another passively involved actor – the natural environment reacting to human interventions. It benefits from an ECOURBAN Development especially in the two main aspects of sustainability – the rates of resource use and of emissions:
Less land demand and sealed-up area due to compact dense urban patterns (avoiding urban sprawl) allows the preservation of larger self-contained undisturbed natural green areas and agricultural lands.
Saving energy due to minimised and efficient motorised transport as well as solar architecture and low energy housing results in decreased consumption of fossil fuels (and decreased environmental damage in oil-producing regions).
This contributes to climate protection through reduced CO2 emissions as well as improved regional air quality due to fewer exhaust emissions.
And finally, but most importantly, humankind benefits from the long term protection of the natural basis for life.