Waitara resident Joe Rauner welcomes the New Plymouth District Council plan to redirect savings from projects to building 1 to 1.5 km of footpaths. Joe has been campaigning for building footpaths, kerbing, and channeling (to direct water away from properties) in the area for 26 years.

Listen to Living Streets Aotearoa's President Tim Jones on Checkpoint talking about our position on the Government's lane use improvements consultation.

Tune into RNZ's Checkpoint today at 4:25 pm to hear Living Streets Aotearoa's President Tim Jones interviewed about our position on the Government's lane use improvements consultation. 🎧

Living Streets Aotearoa has released a statement on the Government's lane use improvements consultation. We welcome four of the five proposals in the Government’s lane use improvements consultation, but are concerned that one proposal poses serious dangers for pedestrians.

A great article unpacking AT's proposed changes to Green Lane West, which aren't a good solution for cyclists or pedestrians.

Recent ACC data shows that e-scooter injuries are on the rise, especially among young people. The data doesn't describe who was injured, but certainly pedestrians are at risk of injury from e-scooter riders because they can ride on footpaths and ride at a fast speed.

This is a great article discussing how older adults who may have to give up driving a car can connect with other non-drivers to help them make the transition. The piece starts with an anecdote from the author who has a discussion her parents about stopping driving:

Locals in Northland are welcoming a proposal to reduce speed limits on several roads in the region. "After reducing speed limits from 100km/h to 80km/h, then reversing them back to 100km/h last year under the coalition Government, NZ Transport Agency [NZTA] is again proposing lowering speed limits.

This is a fascinating article written by Caroline Shaw and Katherine Cullerton about the research findings from a study their research team recently conducted.

Why is AT taking a huge step backward by proposing a trial to reintroduce general vehicle traffic from 7pm- 7am on a section of Queen Street, as well as reducing the times that bus lanes operate on Wellesley St?

Are you concerned about the proposed cuts to the Total Mobility Scheme and want to make a submission but don't know where to start? Next week Free Fares NZ are holding a zoom workshop from 4:15 - 5:15pm Tuesday 24th February to help you craft your submission. Zoom link to join:

Submit for safer speeds in Waikato and Bay of Plenty by the end of today! Currently, there is an NZTA consultation on speed limits in these regions at the following locations:

Recently, two students in Auckland were hit by drivers while walking to school. Thankfully, both are recovering in hospital, but students should be able to walk safely to and from school, without fearing for their lives.

Recently proposed changes to the Total Mobility Scheme will result in a subsidy decrease from 75% to 65%. At a time when all people are feeling the cost of living crisis, the cut hits one of the communities who can afford it the least.

The other video recording we've just released from the 2025 Walking Summit is the Keynote Address from Dr Eva Neely.

We are beginning to release the videos from the 2025 Walking Summit on our Youtube channel and website, for everyone to watch and engage with! The first video we released is of the Opening Ceremony and Keynote Address from Dr Alice Miller.

The February Living Streets Aotearoa eBulletin is out now! It covers topics like: -Walking Summit 2025 video release -Reporting footpath parking -South Island speed limit consultations Read it in full on our website.

A walking group in the United States is helping people with their grief. The group gets out every day to walk together and talk.

Have you heard about London's "low-traffic neighbourhoods (LTNs)"? This piece questions whether that's even the right name for them, because after all pedestrians and cyclists are traffic too!

The public consultation on a number of proposed speed limit changes in the South Island is now open. You have until 6 March to submit in support of safer speeds! The proposed speed limit changes include the following:

This is an interesting review of a year of congestion pricing in New York City. In particular, the results showed that people were still coming into the city, but not using private vehicles and in many cases were using public transit.

This is a great article written by Dr Mirjam Schindler and Dr Eva Neely, who was a keynote speaker at the 2025 Walking Summit. The article talks about some of the research findings from the Parent-Centred Urbanism research platform, and recommends changes that would improve cities for new parents.

Did you hear about the crossing pole placed in the middle of a new shared path in Auckland? This is an example of why shared paths don't work well, because cyclists and pedestrians have different needs.

Residents in Ōpononi and Ōmāpere are concerned about vegetation that is overgrowing footpaths, making them difficult to use. Far North District Council (FNDC) confirmed that clearing footpath in these areas is not in their maintenance contract.

A lovely story highlighting Andrea Howard, one of the participants of the 2025 Walk1200km Challenge by Wilderness Magazine. "Howard already enjoyed walking and was keen to get outdoors more, so come January 2025, she started walking every day, tracking how far she was going."

Living Streets Aotearoa supports the West End Crossing project in New Plymouth. When completed, it will be of huge benefit to pedestrian safety, wellbeing, and will empower people to choose walking as a way to get into and around the City Centre.

Do faster speed limits mean you get to your destination faster? Not really, according to the outcome of a recent test drive carried out in Auckland. In the test, two drivers set off to get from Coyle Park in Pt Chevalier, to Pt Resolution Park in Parnell at 8:30 am on a Tuesday in early December.

Several speed limit reductions are being proposed across the South Island, after communities raised concerns about stretches of State Highway. The proposed speed limit changes include the following:

A community in Whangārei is asking for safety measures to improve a pedestrian crossing where a mother and her child were recently hit by a car driver. Thankfully, both were able to recover from their injuries in hospital, but this is just one of several close calls at this crossing.

What a great way to get people out enjoying and beautifying a public space! In Tairāwhiti, along the Tūranganui River people are encouraged to draw on the waterfront path as part of "Chalk the Walk 2025", which runs until 31 January.

Researchers in the UK are investigating how age-friendly cities are and how they can better support aging populations. In this study described in The Conversation, the results show that the length of pedestrian crossing lights were too short for older adults with mobility impairment to cross.

The transformation of Te Komititanga from a place to cars to a place for people is a huge win! This article highlights the Christmas tree lighting which saw crowds of pedestrians gather in the square to watch.

Joining the Wednesday Challenge in 2026 is a great way to start a resolution to reduce your car use! The Wednesday Challenge is a programme that runs in Tauranga, Tairāwhiti, Auckland, Hamilton, and Christchurch encouraging people to commute on Wednesday by walking, biking, and public transport.

Happy New Year! 🥳 Are you looking for a resolution for 2026? How about giving up your car? As described in this article, deciding not to drive a car reduces congestion and pollution, saves money, and improves your health.

Lower speed limits are being rolled out before the holiday period in several places! First, safer speeds on SH2 are being introduced in Karangahake and Waihī, after public consultation on the limits.

Coming across a parked parked on or over the footpath while walking can be annoying and challenging to navigate. Not only is this an inconsiderate parking job, it’s also illegal. This means you can report footpath parking incidents to your local council.

Submit on AT's proposed changes to Green Lane West to advocate for pedestrian, cyclists, and public transit users! The proposed improvements won't do anything to make cyclists safer and will actually make the situation riskier by adding shared paths that don't suit pedestrians or cyclists.

Our new Living Streets Aotearoa website has launched! This project has been developed over the past few months and we are excited for our audience to check it out.

This is a great piece by Tim Welch about how higher speed limits lead to bigger costs and lower productivity. "Auckland had 34,628 reported crashes between 2022 and 2025. The “road toll” conversation typically stops at the obvious costs: injuries, deaths, emergency response. But it misses a lot."

Eddie Clemen's new sculpture brightens up a pedestrian thoroughfare linking the railway station with Wellington’s waterfront and CBD.

Living Streets Aotearoa Executive Council members held their annual strategy meeting this weekend. It was a productive couple of days and included a catch up with Wellington Branch members! L-R: Chris Teo-Sherrell, Tim Jones, Bill Frith, Jenni Wiggle, Carina Duke. Not pictured: Caroline McElnay.

It's very disappointing to see Christchurch City Council make the decision to retain 50 km/h speed limits on several roads in central Christchurch, when the majority of submitters supporter lowering the limits to safer speeds.

Why is AT taking a step backward by proposing a short, car-free section of Queen Street go back to being open to car traffic? Connor Sharp does a fantastic job unpacking the long history of proposals to pedestrianise the street and what these new proposals say in this Greater Auckland article.

Grey Power New Zealand gave our Yellow Feet Leaflets a shout out in the most recent edition of their magazine!

Living Streets Aotearoa endorses the new vision that Cycle Wellington @cyclewgtn.bsky.social proposes for the Old Hutt Road Path. It is a shared path for cyclists and pedestrians, and with upcoming changes to the cycle network, there are likely to be more cyclists on the path in the next few years.

Living Streets Aotearoa supports this proposal to create a pedestrian-only section of Cambridge Street in Pātea. Implementing this change would provide more space for people to gather and enjoy the town.

What do you want to know about footpath parking and reporting incidents of people parking on the footpath? We're putting together a resource to help people deal with this problem and want to hear from you what it should include.

Today is the International Day of Persons with Disabilities (IDPD) 2025! The theme for this year is "Fostering disability inclusive societies for advancing social progress" One aspect of this is designing for people with disabilities, which can benefit more than people in the disability community.

Lovely to see the revamp of this alleyway in Arataki, including a new mural! Students at Mount Maunganui Intermediate worked on the mural to beautify and bring a sense of identity to the area, in hopes of getting more people to walk and enjoy their time there.

A group in Ōhaeawai are calling for calling for drivers to slow down and obey the 60 km/h on the highway through town. Residents gathered on the footpath beside the highway, holding signs reminding motorists who passed to slow down an drive at the speed limit.