Zurich should remain one of the cities with the highest quality of life, even with a growing population and number of jobs. Urban spaces and mobility are of crucial importance. In recent years, new demands on urban space, technological developments and additional mobility requirements have led to changes.

It is becoming increasingly important to align the design of urban space with climate change. The importance of the urban space as a social and economic area and the participation of the population have not been taken into account in the previous strategies “City Spaces Zurich” and “City Transport 2025”. For all these reasons, the strategies are being further developed.

In 2021, the civil engineering office carried out a broad-based participatory process. 1200 people took part in an online participation in a playful way, 800 responses were received in several quarters. Events were held for representatives of organizations and companies. The promotion of environmentally friendly forms of mobility and climate protection were central needs.

Desired measures include above all more green and shade as well as less car traffic in the districts. The urban spaces should invite you to linger. In addition, the population would like to be able to have a greater say in the design of rooms.

The new umbrella strategy lays the foundations for attractive public spaces and environmentally friendly, efficient mobility in a livable and climate-neutral city. Since there are interactions between urban space and mobility, the two previous strategies “City Spaces Zurich” and “City Traffic 2025” will be jointly developed further and also coordinated with the city’s environmental strategy.

Precisely because projects have a long planning lead time, it is important to first clarify the target image, said City Councilor Wolff. The umbrella strategy is a strategic control instrument to meet the challenges of inner development in the areas of mobility and urban space as well as climate change.

The aim is to achieve the target image of a livable and climate-neutral city in which the share of pedestrian, bicycle and public transport is increased and attractive open spaces are created in all quarters. The proportion of unsealed and green areas on streets, squares and facades is to be increased, noise reduced – and air quality improved.

The needs of residents and tradespeople for rooms that are being redesigned should be asked more closely. Environmentally friendly and efficient means of transport should become more attractive through innovative mobility solutions and digital services.

Based on the umbrella strategy, the two specialist strategies “Urban Spaces” and “Mobility” will be developed by autumn 2023, in which the umbrella strategy will be deepened, the overriding goals specified and strategic planning newly developed and updated. The two specialist strategies will replace the “Urban Spaces of Zurich” and “City Transport 2025” strategies.