Slow paths give access to hidden green space

For the pilot project in the Antwerp region, the province of Antwerp and Streekvereniging Zuidrand teamed up with seven municipalities south of Antwerp city, resulting in 8 projects at 8 different locations. The goal was to increase the accessibility of local green areas, by adding safe pathways for cyclists and pedestrians (called ‘slow paths’), whilst at the same time increasing water buffering capacity to build climate resilience.

With more than 3 km of slow paths and a water buffering capacity of more than 4300 m3, the pilot meets its goals. But the benefits are much bigger than that; they range from better social cohesion to a higher recreational value of the areas where semi-permeable paths and wooden boardwalks are constructed.

The largest project within the pilot is the construction of the ‘Blauwgroen Parkspoor Natuurlijk’ in Kontich. The former railway embankment is now a beautiful park with water buffering ponds, indigenous plants and trees, a natural playground, and a cycle path with permeable pavement. Rainwater from the adjacent neighbourhood is buffered in the ponds and can slowly seep into the ground.

Johan Asselberghs, environmental officer for the municipality of Kontich, worked closely with the residents in the area. ‘At first, the residents were a bit hesitant with regards to our plans. Especially because we wanted to take down some of the old non-indigenous trees to make space for indigenous vegetation, increase the amount of sunlight on the ground and clear up lines of sight. We organised several participation meetings for residents. I think it’s one of the main reasons the project is now such a success,’ he says. ‘We really took the time to listen to people’s worries and explain the benefits of our plans. Before, the road through this area wasn’t used much. The area was overgrown with brambles and weeds and was considered unsafe. Now the road is a much-used connection, full of walkers and cyclists. Neighbours with children meet at the playground too.’

Although densely populated, the Antwerp Zuidrand region has many green areas. However, these areas are sometimes hidden or difficult to access. The pilot provided the province of Antwerp and Streekvereniging Zuidrand with an opportunity to connect these places better to existing pathways while also increasing the quality of the green space.

‘Adding such paths may seem like a simple change, but the benefits are very tangible,’ says Dries Lauwers from Streekvereniging Zuidrand. The academic partners in Nature Smart Cities put numbers to these benefits, to provide local authorities with convincing arguments for investments in green infrastructure. ‘We had a masters student who researched the influence of the wooden boardwalk in Edegem. The results are quite staggering. About half of the respondents in his research visit the park more often now. Using the Travel Cost Method, he found that the benefit from their visit is almost three times as high as the cost of getting there. The boardwalk allows water to infiltrate into the ground, stimulates people to get moving and increases the park’s appeal.’

The Province of Antwerp and Streekvereniging Zuidrand also wanted to investigate the influence of the project on air quality. It sounds logical enough that the air alongside busy roads is of lower quality than the air on a slow road with only cyclists and pedestrians. But what is the influence of trees and other vegetation? Sara de Clerck, researcher at Antwerpen University, leads a citizen science project to answer this question. 

Volunteers walk a predefined route with measurement instruments in a stroller. ‘We compare three routes that are situated next to each other: a very busy road, the newly installed slow path which is surrounded by trees and a regular parallel street with low traffic. The measurement instruments take the air in at the height of a child in a stroller, to measure the quality of air a child would breathe. Air quality is extra important to children because they are still developing. The first results seem to indicate the air quality is indeed best on the slow path,’ Sara explains. 

When asked about the findings from this project and the next steps, Katleen van Braekel from the Province of Antwerp answers as follows. ‘The Nature Smart Cities project is part of our ongoing cooperation with Streekvereniging Zuidrand. Our common goal is to provide local authorities with convincing arguments to invest in green infrastructure and to disseminate this knowledge to all the municipalities in the province and the Regional Landscapes in Flanders. We hope the evidence-based business model will support local authorities to get public support for the social benefits of green areas. The acknowledgement of these benefits will help them implement and finance more green spaces.

As an execution-oriented government we will make an extra effort, in addition to the capacity building workshops, to disseminate the rich knowledge and expertise gathered through the project towards different teams of local, regional and Flemish authorities. The coming period, we intend to organise dissemination activities for environmental officers, technical staff, program coordinators etc. because we have some beautiful examples to show with this pilot.’