The city of Brussels is looking to implement a “be running” strategy, aiming to encourage the practice of running in Brussels. The plan, drawn up by perspective.brussels in collaboration with Brussels Mobility, Brussels Environment, the municipalities, but also private actors (race organisers, running teams, running equipment manufacturers), identifies different routes to be developed that better accommodate runners and proposes a guide for how facilities should be adapted to this practice.
Be running comes after a study by Visit Brussels revealed that over 20% of the city’s sport enthusiasts practice running, the activity becoming particularly popular during the Covid-19 lockdowns. The modal shift between 2010 and 2022 also shows us that the share of pedestrians is becoming increasingly important in Brussels (from 32 to 36%). But in an urban environment, making the different users of public space coexist is a challenge.
The new strategy combines regional planning, mobility and sport, with the aim of bringing together the different “pedestrian speeds” and meeting the mobility objectives of the Brussels Region, aimed at the proper development of public space.
Thanks to the identification of routes conducive to this discipline, running enthusiasts will eventually be able to move from green spaces to green spaces thanks to urban developments on roads that are either already redeveloped or will be in the future. These developments will take into account the practice of running in a logic of cohabitation between slow and fast pedestrians, but also with all the other users of the public space.
Concretely, the project proposes a map of suitable routes, from west to east and from north to south of Brussels, in connection with the hierarchy of pedestrian roads defined in the Regional Mobility Plan and the so-called structuring axes that are the Canal and the promenade green. To identify the best ways to ensure good interaction between users, route developers used the CityTools design office, which is intended for public space planners (Brussels Mobility, STIB, BELIRIS, municipalities, etc).
The mission consisted of producing a planning guide for “all pedestrian speeds”, intended for designers and public space planners whose projects ought to improve the practice of running on the routes identified in the “ideal route map”. The aim of the guide is to help them develop good practices for the design of “runner friendly” routes in public spaces, while also taking into account other users of public spaces (slower pedestrians, cyclists, etc).
The recommendations do not aim to demarcate public spaces with defined running routes using a specific design-language (paving, dedicated space, signs, etc.). Instead, the idea is to adapt the public space, in its generic character, into a comfortable and continuous infrastructure that allows joggers to find their place among the other users. The recommendations follow the principles of Universal Design, whereby all modes of transport are able to function and co-exist in public space. As such, these guidelines stand to benefit joggers as much as average pedestrians or those with reduced mobilities.
The guide was elaborated following the practice of a series of races in the city, which have made it possible to take into account the on the ground realities, enabling the finding of the best solutions for the development of the running tracks. The elements of the guide are also consistent with other regional guides, which will be included in the future “manual for public space projects” coordinated by urban.brussels.
