The right to walk on wide, safe and lively pavements.
Proposed urban right
Everyone has the right to walk on accessible, wide and safe pavements, without pedestrian space being occupied by vehicles, and to live in neighbourhoods where local commerce remains part of everyday life.
In some streets of the neighbourhood, cars parked on pavements reduce the space available for walking. This turns everyday routes into narrow, uncomfortable and poorly adapted passages for older people, people with reduced mobility, families with pushchairs, children, or anyone who needs to move safely.
The street is not only a place of passage: it is also an infrastructure of care. When pedestrian space is reduced to prioritise parking, walking stops being comfortable and safe. At the same time, the gradual loss of small local shops weakens neighbourhood life and reduces everyday places of encounter, support and proximity.
To protect
Protect local commerce and the small shops that still remain in the neighbourhood, because they sustain proximity, everyday activity and urban life at a human scale.
To remove
Remove cars parked on pavements and recover that space for people who walk. Pavements should not function as leftover spaces, but as safe, accessible and dignified routes.
To change or add
Review the urban design of streets where pavements remain narrow, uncomfortable or unwelcoming. Some streets have already been improved and show that more pleasant walking routes are possible; others still need changes that allow people to move without obstacles and with greater comfort.
Declaration wording
Cities should guarantee accessible, continuous pavements free from improper occupation, recognising walking as a basic form of mobility, health and urban care. Protecting local commerce and improving pedestrian space should be part of just adaptation policies, because they sustain more liveable, proximate neighbourhoods that are better able to care for everyday life.