Loading AI tools
Autonomous communication route used in France. From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
A voie verte or greenway is an autonomous communication route reserved for non-motorized traffic, such as pedestrians and cyclists. Voies vertes are developed with a view to integrated development that enhances the environment, heritage, quality of life, and user-friendliness. In Europe, they have been organized since October 1997 within the framework of the European Green Network[1][2] to coordinate and regulate uses often prohibited in certain countries or that compete with motorized practices.[3]
In this regard, towpaths, old rural paths, and disused railway tracks are privileged mediums for the development of voies vertes.[4] If managed appropriately (through sustainable gardening and restoration ecology, and without the use of pesticides in the surroundings, which can then potentially play a role in the green infraestructure and blue network), voires vertes are one of the elements of sustainable development policies in the relevant areas.
For English speakers, greenways refers to voies vertes, but also more generally to "a road that is good from an environmental point of view" (Turner, 1995,[5] or - in England, according to a survey cited by Turner in 2006: "a linear space containing elements planned, designed, and managed for multiple purposes, including ecological, recreational, cultural, aesthetic, and others compatible with the concept of sustainable land use") or a wide range of landscape and urban planning strategies including, to varying degrees, an environmental concern associated with transportation infrastructure,[6][7] the edges of which have often acquired special value[8] and are sometimes associated with the concept of a biological corridor in Europe.[9]
From 1975 to 1995, voies vertes proliferated significantly in the urban landscapes of so-called developed countries.[10] For example, by 1995, more than 500 communities were building them in North America alone. They address new human needs while also extending some of the functions of ancient rural roads. More than simple facilities or landscaping, they increasingly aim to provide a counterbalance to the loss of natural landscape in the context of increasing urbanization and agricultural industrialization. As times changed, the notion of chemins verts ou corridors verts evolved to meet new needs and challenges.[10]
Three distinct stages (or "generations") of voies vertes can be identified as forms of urban and peri-urban landscape:
BelgiumIn Belgium, a network of 2200 km of voies vertes was already defined in 2003, of which 900 km were developed.[12]
In the Walloon Region, they form the RAVeL network.
In Flanders, there is a network of towpaths, railway trails, and other independent cycle paths. Most are integrated into the numbered-node cycle networks of the provinces, or belong to LF-routes (Dutch: lange-afstandsfietsroute, long-distance tourist cycle routes) or the bicycle highway network (Dutch: fietssnelweg, utilitarian voies vertes providing direct routes between and around cities).
NetherlandsIn the Netherlands, the situation and terminology are comparable to Flanders, with the difference that there are few rail trails and many other independent cycle paths.
FranceIn France, a decree of September 16, 2004 introduced voies vertes into the Highway Code: voies vertes are defined as roads "exclusively reserved for the circulation of non-motorized vehicles, pedestrians and horse riders[13]."
SwitzerlandIn Switzerland, there's a cross-border voie verte from Geneva to Annemasse.[13] A voie verte through Lausanne (along the railroad tracks) is programmed for completion in 2018.[14]
They are most often developed on old railway lines,[15] towpaths,[16] roads closed to automobile traffic, and cultural routes (Roman roads, pilgrimage routes). They have certain characteristics:
Voies vertes also offer services, located in preserved old facilities such as former railway stations and lockkeeper's houses. These services can be of various types: accommodation, museums, bike rental, equestrian accommodation, community centers, etc. They cater to both local users and tourists. voies vertes are provided with information (maps, brochures, etc.) about the route itself and nearby sites. For example, several tens of kilometers of the former coastal railway of the Chemins de Fer de Provence have been converted into a cycle path between Toulon and Pramousquier (in the municipality of Le Lavandou).
This example illustrates the main criticism of voies vertes, namely the fact that they sometimes contribute to downgrading and therefore definitively condemning railway lines that could potentially be reopened for collectivization and decarbonization of travel in peri-urban or rural areas, instead of taking up space on roads. This competition between two complementary modes in an era of energy transition inducing increasing decarbonization of travel can therefore be ironic.[17]
Seamless Wikipedia browsing. On steroids.
Every time you click a link to Wikipedia, Wiktionary or Wikiquote in your browser's search results, it will show the modern Wikiwand interface.
Wikiwand extension is a five stars, simple, with minimum permission required to keep your browsing private, safe and transparent.
.jpg)
