“Happiness itself is a commons to which everyone should have equal access” 

Enrique Peñalosa

http://shareable.net/blog/can-we-design-cities-for-happiness

The former mayor of Bogotá, Colombia is spreading the message of hope for developing cities around the World as his overhaul of Columbia’s capital city improved the quality of life immensely in just three years: For example

• Led a team that created the TransMilenio, a bus rapid transit system (BRT), which now carries a half-million passengers daily on special bus lanes that offer most of the advantages of a subway at a fraction of the cost.

• Built 52 new schools, refurbished 150 others and increased student enrollment by 34 percent.

• Established or improved 1200 parks and playgrounds throughout the city.

• Built three central and 10 neighborhood libraries.

• Built 100 nurseries for children under five.

• Improved life in the slums by providing water service to 100 percent of Bogotá households.  

• Bought undeveloped land on the outskirts of the city to prevent real estate speculation and ensured that it will be developed as affordable housing with electrical, sewage, and telephone service as well as space reserved for parks, schools, and greenways.  

• Established 300 kilometers of separated bikeways, the largest network in the developing world.  

• Created the world’s longest pedestrian street, 17 kilometers (10.5 miles) crossing much of the city as well as a 45- kilometer (28 miles) greenway along a path that had been originally slated for an eight-lane highway.  

• Reduced traffic by almost 40 percent by implementing a system where motorists must leave cars at home during rush hour two days a week. He also raised parking fees and local gas taxes, with half of the proceeds going to fund the new bus transit system.  

• Inaugurated an annual car-free day, where everyone from CEOs to janitors commuted to work in some way other than a private automobile.  

• Planted 100,000 trees.

I have always had a keen interest in utilising public space for social well-being and this article has ignited it to a new level: Peñalosa does not just have an idealistic view on how to bring about good quality of life - he has implemented and proven that some sort of happiness can be reached for a broader range of society.

With CIID final projects coming up, Urban design may be a little out of reach, but the core values of Peñalosa will be ingrained in my own project aims. Otherwise, I am extremely happy to have read this article, leaving me inspired by the saving power, and ingenuity of…a politician.