Books such as ‘The Livable City’ offer ideas for better cities

by Edward Hirst for Rowan Public Library

Where might the happiest city on earth be? According to the award-winning journalist Charles Montgomery in his book “Happy City,” it might be Bogota, Colombia. Enrique Penalosa was the mayor who committed to changing the perception of his city and improving the lives of the residents. His plan for reducing traffic and creating public space for people has played a large part in creating a more livable city.

In the book “The Livable City” from the Partners for Livable Communities, the authors define what makes a city livable: open space, free-flowing traffic, historic preservation, attractive cultural and civic institutions, good housing, good jobs and good schools. This book provides the tools that help civic leaders get a handle on the many of the problems cities face today.

Jeff Speck writes about many problems he sees in American cities that he believes can be solved by improving their walkability in his book “Walkable City.” Public health, sustainability and even the lagging economy, he argues, can be boosted by making cities friendlier for pedestrians. Drawing on his background as a city planner and architectural designer, Speck makes a convincing case for revitalizing our public spaces in favor of foot traffic, with steps such as planting more trees and narrowing roads, investing in public transit systems and designing visually interesting buildings.

For thousands of years streets have been a major center of commerce, socialization and cultural exchange. But the advent of automobiles and suburbanization in the 20th century eroded the richness of American street life. Streets and sidewalks, once filled with people, are now filled with automobiles. In the book “Street Reclaiming,” David Engwicht prescribes a series of methods for returning vibrancy to our streets.

These days everyone is familiar with smartphones and smart homes, but how about smart cities? Increasingly such things as traffic patterns, sewage flow and street lighting are all being guided by software. In his book, “Smart Cities,” author Anthony Townsend takes a look at how cities are upgrading their infrastructure for the Internet age.