Attractive, safe and modern walkways for everyone

‘Pedestrian' action plan

The ‘Pedestrian' action plan marks a major step in the city administration's efforts to pay increased attention to the interests of pedestrians. The objective of this action plan is to implement accessibility and gender-mainstreaming requirements in the construction and maintenance of bridges, footbridges and steps.

The ‘Gender-Mainstreaming' pilot project in Vienna's sixth district inspired the ‘Pedestrian' action plan. In this project, experts from the city administration explored effective ways of applying the city's gender-mainstreaming strategy in their day-to-day work. Based on the insights gained in this pilot project, the Municipal Department for Bridge Construction and Foundation Engineering (MA 29) developed an action plan for the whole of Vienna, with a special focus on improving conditions for pedestrians.

In 2005, MA 29 started to take stock of all the structures under its management - bridges, footbridges, and steps - and to define improvement measures for each of them. A questionnaire was drawn up which has to be filled in during regularly scheduled on-site inspections. The data gathered in the process is entered into a database designed specifically for this action plan.

These tools have enabled MA 29 to ‘automatically' take account of pedestrians' requirements in its routine work.

A major aspect in this context is accessibility. In the case of bridges, the primary points of interest are transitions to adjacent footpaths, pavements, and guardrail design. To ensure access for all, handrails should be mounted at different heights, be easy to grip and feel for without any risk of injury. The relevant building codes and standards for accessibility, such as Austrian standard ÖNORM B 1600, must be adhered to.

Ramps for pushchairs and prams are being built in an effort to retrofit existing steps which are currently not accessible for everyone. MA 29 has teamed up with the Coordination Office for Planning and Construction Geared to the Requirements of Daily Life and the Specific Needs of Women to develop guidelines offering tips on what aspects to consider when retrofitting steps and how to implement such construction projects in practice. For instance, a pushchair ramp will make sense only if the steps in question feature a certain width and gradient to begin with.

MA29_02_Pedestrian Action Plan 

Facts & Figures             

  • Project timeframe: started in 2005
  • Number of bridges managed by MA 29 (in 2010): 814
  • Number of walls managed by MA 29 (in 2010): 359
  • Number of gantry signs managed by MA 29 (in 2010): 85
  • Number of noise barriers managed by MA 29 (in 2010): 16
  • Number of special structures managed by MA 29 (in 2010): 27

 

Contact

DI Rainer Müller
Tel. +43 1 4000 84267
Fax +43 1 4000 7997
rainer.mueller@tinavienna.at 

 

Links

 

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