Beyond the Pavement: Urban Design Policy, Procedures & Design Principles by Roads and Traffic Authority of New South Wales
Jury comment
The Roads and Traffic Authority of New South Wales, with its own in-house landscape architecture and urban design expertise, has been at the vanguard of promoting high quality approach to roadway design for over ten years.
The first edition of Beyond the Pavement in 1999 broke new ground in taking the position that the design of urban infrastructure associated with roads, bridges, cycleways and bus projects was to be assessed against urban design principles. The guidelines were highly significant as they were embedded in New South Wales Government policy for all RTA projects, from planning to implementation.
The tenth anniversary update of that original document was produced by the RTA’s urban design section, which comprises landscape architects, architects and planners. The material in this new edition evolved from a period of project review, reflection on the results, and revision and trialling of improved processes.
Ongoing research and development, such as for noise wall design and “self-explaining road environments,” continues to strengthen landscape architects’ and urban designers’ involvement in RTA projects.
