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[music]
>> Richard Witt: I'm working with a large team on developing a concept called Shared Spaces which is re-envisioning
how the downtown core might work in terms of creating complete streets, mixed use for
bikes, transit, cars, pedestrians. [audible pedestrian crossing signal]
>> Stephen Schijns: It's the sharing of space between vehicles, people, all the different uses, seen and unseen.
We have both the infrastructure that everything is trying to be shared but we also have the
actual operations and the day-to-day interactions. [sirens]
>> Richard: It's an existing street grid, so we're having to work within the confines of what's
there while trying to look to the future for what's going to be there, but the street grid
is going to be very difficult to change so our ideas vary from very conservative ideas,
small tweaks, up to massive reinventions.
>> Stephen: We have a very complex system but there is actually still a lot of inefficiencies in
that system. There's a lot of time and a lot of space that is not being used effectively
and if we are to handle the demands not only that we have now, but the growing demands
of the future, we need to be start squeezing more and more use out of the space.
>> Richard: Our main principle is saying that it's going to be very difficult to physically redevelop
the street but that we need to work on time of day, time of year, so creating a space
that is designed for several purposes and also designed for several times of that purpose.
Being an architect, I would start with an idea of physical change but an idea of attitude
and behavioral change can have much more impact than all of the cost of that infrastructure.