Tactic 02: Streets for People

Tactic 2: Streets for People

In informal settlements throughout Kenya, streets play an integral role beyond their conventional use for vehicular traffic, which is less important due to the low rates of car ownership. These streets emerge as dynamic public spaces, hosting markets, play areas, community gatherings, and even protests. Recognising and designing streets as versatile, multi-service infrastructures not only maximise their utility but also ensure they are valued as essential components of urban life, meriting significant community engagement and participatory planning efforts. This approach fosters streets that truly cater to the diverse needs of the communities they serve.

The Challenge

Streets form the largest combined area of public spaces in most cities. In Kenya’s informal settlements, streets are few or lacking quality and diversity of use, but they remain critical public spaces for residents. For instance, children regularly play in streets, as this is often the only available open space. Inadequate streets in these neighbourhoods compound the lack of basic services and increase the impact of risk.

“A lack of streets and open spaces that connect them to their surroundings can make the provision of basic services almost impossible”.

Meanwhile, while streets provide opportunities for multifunctional and connected places, development must ensure street-led transformations are not overshadowed by unintended outcomes like gentrification, increases in rental rates, and high costs of access to infrastructure and services.

Streets for People rely on ongoing feedback and evaluations of past and current street projects, inform continual refinements and improvements, ensuring that street designs evolve to meet changing community needs and lessons learned

Streets for People are laid out and provided with adequate infrastructure to support their various functions, including safe and inclusive public spaces.

Streets for People engage community members as equal partners, leveraging their knowledge to develop streets that are not only functional but reflect their collective vision.

Streets for People promote multifunctional use of streets that connect the environment and people.

Streets for People allow for all inhabitants of informal settlements to have the right to participate in the production of sustainable, accessible, and equitable streets.

Streets are integral to realisation of sustainable urban development. Streets not only enable mobility, and link infrastructures, communities and economies, but are also public spaces that can meet multiple and diverse needs of urban residents.

Investment in public infrastructure is critical in spurring street-led transformations in informal settlements in Kenya. Streets provide opportunities for multifunctional and connected places which can be more cost-effective and reduce the funding gap.

Streets for People promote access to socio-economic rights by the community

A street-led approach eliminates or minimises displacement in informal settlements, ensuring residents continue to enjoy their housing rights, as well as access and benefit from their social networks, and places of work.

Street-led upgrading also promotes access to water and sanitation rights, as water, drainage, and sewer infrastructure is normally integrated within the street network. For instance, as part of the Korogocho Slum Upgrading Program (KSUP), street-led upgrading was undertaken to address road accessibility issues, alongside drainage, street lighting, water, and sewer challenges.

Streets for People promote equity and inclusion

New or improved existing street connections include installation of new or missing infrastructure. This contributes to equitable distribution and access to infrastructure in underserved areas. Many informal settlements are strategically located near work areas, and this, together with high city fare rates and limited street connectivity, makes walking the preferred mode of transport by residents. However, existing streets are not planned and designed as ‘walking streets’. Planning and designing of streets both for both vehicle users and pedestrians, with appropriate separation, safety, and traffic calming measures promote their inclusivity. Inclusive streets should also be accessible and usable for all residents, including persons with disabilities, the elderly, and children.

Streets for People are planned and designed with the community

A participatory approach and active involvement of residents creates places with a community identity that address the needs of the community. Involving the community in the planning, design, and placemaking of streets ensures that resultant plans and designs address their needs, foster social cohesion and improves relations between residents and the city. For example, in implementing the superblock model in Barcelona, “Residents, business owners, and other community members were invited to engage with the scoping and design of the public space by participating in visioning meetings and providing feedback as each section of the superblock was activated”.

Streets for People are multifunctional
Streets serve not only as links within urban networks but also as public spaces that contribute to a sustainable and improved quality of life for residents. This approach ensures that streets are laid out and provided with adequate infrastructure to support their various functions, including as safe and inclusive public spaces for socialisation, relaxation, exercise, and cultural expression.

Key concepts

A fine-grained network of streets improves access for pedestrians and cyclists. The blue lines represent pedestrians and cyclists access to the core of each urban block. The orange lines indicate vehicular access.

To encourage the design of safe and efficient streets, this manual prioritizes pedestrians, cyclists, and public transport in the user hierarchy.

How To

Planning &
Design

Streets should be recognised as multifunctional, not only as links within urban networks, but also as public spaces that contribute to a sustainable and improved quality of life for residents. This approach ensures that streets are laid out and provided with the adequate infrastructure to support their various functions, including as safe and inclusive public spaces for socialisation, relaxation, exercise, and cultural expression.

While planning, it is critical to consider the Right of Way (RoW), the road alignment and the street section in an existing and functioning community. By considering the needs and priorities of the People that a proposed street intends to serve, the RoW, street sections, and road alignment should consider and integrate with existing community assets and patterns. In the case of Mukuru SPA, the conditions and context led to revised RoW and street section proposals that were more tailored to the settlement.

Involving the community in the planning, design, and placemaking of streets ensures that resultant plans and designs address their needs, foster social cohesion and improves relations between residents and the city.
Data collection before, during, and after street-led interventions in informal settlements can build a case for how future interventions should be implemented, possibly influencing policy on the planning and design of streets in Kenya’s informal settlements.

Are streets present?

Have you identified the needs, challenges and visions of the community in the neighbourhood for street infrastructure? Participatory approaches that consider the needs of different users of streets, and provides for them to make the street inclusive, as well as enhance ownership, are critical at the planning stage.

Collaboration and co-design

Differents street users

Basic services
Public lighting

Community-led sanitation

Have you considered the Right of Way, the road alignment and the street section?

It is critical to consider the Right of Way (RoW), the road alignment and the street section in an existing and functioning community. By considering the needs and priorities of the People that a proposed street intends to serve, the RoW, street sections, and road alignment should consider and integrate with existing community assets and patterns. In the case of Mukuru SPA, the conditions and context led to revised ROW and street section proposals that were more tailored to the settlement

Are the streets multifunctional, catering to mobility, safety, socialisation, and economic activities?

Are streets accessible and usable to all?
What potential street design options can be identified to address the community's specific challenges and needs?

In order to promote transparency, responsibility, and inclusion, every community should have access to information and participation in revitalisation of their street

Have you leveraged local knowledge to create the design options for street infrastructure?

Collaboration and co-design

Does integrating natural elements into street design meet the needs of the community?

nature-based infrastructure

green streets
How can the identified options be prototyped and tested within the community to assess their practicality and impact?

Which criteria are essential for evaluating the effectiveness of each prototyped design in meeting the identified needs?

How will feedback on these prototypes be systematically collected and utilised to inform further design decisions?

Based on community feedback and evaluation results, what revisions are necessary to refine the proposed street designs?

How can the planning process be adapted to incorporate ongoing changes and insights gained through community feedback and prototyping?

Process Map: Considering the needs of different street users https://globaldesigningcities.org/publication/global-street-design-guide/designing-streets-people/

Implementation & Use

Have you actively involved residents from the outset to ensure their needs and preferences are reflected in the street infrastructure implementation?

collaboration & co-design
Have you developed safety standards to ensure the well-being of both workers and residents during street construction?

How will these safety protocols be communicated and enforced?
Have you integrated implementation processes that foster connection between people and the natural environment?
Have you developed training sessions to support residents in acquiring skills for contributing to street construction and maintenance?
How will you gather continuous feedback from the community during and after construction?

In order to promote transparency, responsibility, and inclusion, every community should have access to information and participation in revitalisation of their street.

Governance & Policy

Funding, installation, management, and policy responsibility for street-led upgrading rest with city governments. Coordination between city governments and urban actors is however essential for the effective and efficient functioning of streets in informal settlements. Meanwhile, collaboration between residents and city governments ensures street-led transformations are not overshadowed by unintended outcomes like gentrification, increases in rental rates, and high costs of access to infrastructure and services.

Foster collaboration and viability

Have you coordinated the street-infrastructure design and implementation plan with city governments?

Have you ensured collaboration between residents and city governments?

Have you influenced city governments in a way that the rights of all city dwellers, especially those who are most at risk or vulnerable are considered?

Have adequate funding and resources been allocated by city governments for street-led transformations?

Long-term resilience

Have governments recognised the importance of balanced social-ecological approaches, and of integrating nature-based solutions into policy and practice?