Health & Transport
Health on The Move 2: Back to the Future for a Greener Britain
Traffic should be banned from using residential streets as cut-throughs in a bid to create a safer, greener future for our children.
That's the controversial message from a group of senior health and transport experts who've won the backing of former Chief Medical Officer Sir Liam Donaldson.
The back-to-the-future vision would lead to the creation of "living" streets where children can play out and residents can meet and chat to neighbours.
Traffic, other than for access, would be expected to use main roads and designated throughways only, leaving most streets quieter and safer for walkers and cyclists.
Research shows that this would result in a happier and healthier population with an increased life expectancy.
The proposal is one of several contained in recently published 'Health on the Move 2' which takes a comprehensive look at the links between health and transport.
Other chapters of the publication deal with issues like the causes of congestion, the perceived safety of cycling, and climate change and aviation.
Health on the Move 2 can be read on the Transport & Health Study Group website www.transportandhealth.org.uk in the section on "Publications".