The city changes, and with it our most daily behaviors. A recent study by MIT researchers reveals a phenomenon as discreet as it is revealing: pedestrians in large American cities are walking today much faster than forty years ago. Behind this acceleration hides an in -depth transformation of the way in which we live, interact and occupy the urban space.
An increase speed, a city in tension
Between 1980 and 2010, pedestrian travel speed in Boston, New York and Philadelphia increased by 15 %. This data, resulting from a study of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), was obtained thanks to an original method: researchers used artificial intelligence to compare videos of public spaces shot in the late 1970s by urban planner William William with others recorded in 2010 in the same places and at the same time.
The speed increase is not trivial: it reflects an underestimated urban company, marked by a quest for constant efficiency and an increasingly utilitarian use of public space. According to Ruth Conroy Dalton, professor of architecture at the University of Northumbria, a faster march reduces the potential contact time between individuals – a missed interaction in a few seconds.
Deserted public spaces
In addition to this acceleration, the study notes another disturbing trend: the attendance of public spaces fell 14 % in three decades. These places of life, formerly conducive to exchange, are less and less perceived as meeting places. In 1980, 5.5 % of passers -by spontaneously joined groups or interacted in these spaces. In 2010, this figure fell just 2 %.
Carlo Ratti, co-author of the study, underlines a fundamental change: public spaces today work more as transit routes than as social ties. The street space has become a place of passage, not stop.
Credit: ISTOCK
Crédits : Dmytro Varavin/istock
Why this transformation?
Several factors are advanced to explain this withdrawal. One of the most obvious: the omnipresence of the smartphone. In the past, we strolled in public space in search of fortuitous meetings. Today, social interactions are organized in advance, digitized, planned. The need to go to the street to see people has been partly absorbed by technology.
The physical environment also plays a role. Investigations have shown that the monotony of the facades and the absence of an architectural variety negatively influence our desire to stay in the street. The less the environment is stimulating, the less people dwell on it, creating a vicious circle of avoidance and isolation. The proliferation of interior spaces (air -conditioned cafes, connected places) completes to divert users from public space.
A faster, but less human city?
This evolution raises a crucial question: what becomes of the civic role of public space in a city where we do not stop? The urban space is not limited to a logistical function. It is also a place of meeting, exchange, democracy on a daily basis. The fact that these interactions are in clear decline invites us to rethink the way in which we conceive our cities.
The study authors argue for a reconquest of these places. “Recharge” public spaces is to offer more attractive, more varied environments, more conducive to wandering and meeting. It is not only an urban planning matter, but an issue of social cohesion.
Towards a new urban culture
Building on the success of this first analysis in the United States, the MIT continues its research in 40 European places to better understand the cultural differences in the use of urban space. At a time when Western societies are faced with a feeling of growing isolation, these studies offer a track: restoring living common spaces could be one of the antidotes to social fragmentation.
By walking faster, we save time – but at what price?
