What constitutes a good city: some case studies

This chapter sets out our ideas on vision and values that underlie land use transport policy and planning for a 'good city' and looks at what some exemplar cities, identifying elements that set them apart in terms of good practice. Drawing on case studies of Vancouver, London, Melbourne, Freiburg, Malmö and Portland (Oregon), the chapter emphasises the importance of the following: engaging the community throughout all stages in the planning process in a meaningful way; linking land use planning to structural economic change; embedding planning for housing affordability within land use transport planning for compact, mixed-use urban growth; building strong communities, social capital and individual wellbeing; a comprehensive focus on urban greening and reducing the environmental footprint of the city; and, implementing integrated governance arrangements, including funding arrangements, to enable delivery of the requisite policies and programmes across a broad front.