IN-PERSON Lisbon Livable Cities. Section A

Abstract

Lisbon and London, two remarkable cities share an extraordinary history of urban resilience, were able to rebuild and reinvent themselves multiple times in the past and most recently in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. Both cities embarked on a journey of re-evaluating and revising their transport policies, embracing active travel, and new mobility trends, adapting to the liveable cities paradigms. Lisbon, one of the Rockefeller Foundation’s 100 Resilient Cities, create bold steps to boost its liveability by improving its cycling and pedestrian infrastructure and promoting active transport. New cycling lines and pedestrian zones introduced during pandemic, align with broader city initiatives. The city is tackling its car dependency problem and implementing new bike lines, improving pedestrians’ pathways and launching e-bike purchase support and bike-sharing schemes. London has a long-standing commitment to active travel infrastructure in form of cycling superhighways, linking cycling to public transport, and has created the Ultra Low Emission Zone (ULEZ). City’s response to pandemic was prompt and characterised by temporary and permanent solutions with pop-up bike lines, widened pedestrian paths and Low Traffic Neighbourhood. While some of the measures were temporary, it is undeniable that London experienced Cycling Revolution that resulted in a strategic shift towards long lasting urban transformation. This comparative analysis of Lisbon and London discuss strategies of promoting active transport and new urban mobility trends. Each city applies unique to its urban context approaches but unified in aims of adapting to resilient tomorrow.