Eindhoven and Tilburg first Dutch cities to sign “The Charter for Walking”

On Wednesday September 13, 2017 the two Brabant cities of Eindhoven and Tilburg were  the first local governments in the Netherlands to commit themselves to the principles  of the ‘Charter for Walking’, when Mary-Ann Schreurs,  Alderman of the city of Eindhoven,  and Mario Jacobs, Alderman of the city of Tilburg,  signed  the Charter.

 This Dutch Charter is a translation of the International Charter for Walking: a declaration in which local governments and other organizations declare to commit themselves to the human being as a pedestrian or hiker. The International Charter identifies the needs of people on foot and provides a common framework to help authorities refocus their existing policies, activities and relationships to create a culture where people choose to walk and to give the pedestrian more attention.

By the sharing of knowledge , the importance of walking (healthy, efficient and sustainable) will be spread and the conditions for choosing the mode of walking could be improved.The approach was immediately embraced by both Aldermen. They mentioned the fact that worldwide in the year 2050 two out of three human beings are living ina city, meaning that there will be an enormous amount of people living on a small piece of land. By planning the environment in such a way that human beings feel their environment is attractive,  people will be stimulated to walk instead of using their car.  By walking in an attractive environment, people can move in a healthy way. Walking is very interesting transport mode in cities, as distances  are relatively small.

The charter for walking invites organizations to collect and share inspiring initiatives to give more attention to the pedestrian. The charter also supports a new vision on mobility and the planning of the public space. In this new vision the mode of walking plays an important role: safe and attractive streets stimulate healthy, active mobility of people, in which the human being is the human size.