Using green infrastructure and sustainable travel to create a more liveable city
Topic: Green infrastructure and air quality
Ancoats Green and Ancoats Mobility Hub are key features of a renewed, low-traffic neighbourhood. Footpaths, cycleways and public transport meet car-free streets, high-density housing and mixed-use buildings. Helping to embed sustainable travel choices, smart logistics and shared services.
Green infrastructure underpins the design and function of these community spaces. Improving air quality and reducing risk from flood and extreme heat. As well as enhancing biodiversity and the health and wellbeing of residents. Use of renewable energy and electric vehicles (EVs) supports this sustainable ethos.
Transport is a major contributor to the city’s carbon (CO2) emissions. And impacts the quality of the city’s air. Risk of flooding and extreme heat are also key issues in urban planning. To create a more liveable city, we must rethink the city’s infrastructure.
What is a more liveable city?
For us, a more liveable city means inclusive and healthy neighbourhoods. They’re climate resilient. They promote the health and wellbeing of those that live in and visit them. And they improve access to the benefits of sustainable travel.
Improving air quality in the city
Improving air quality is key to the redesign of this area. To reduce pollution, active travel is the primary way to move around the area and into the city centre. And the new Ancoats Mobility Hub, one of the first of its kind in the UK, offers consolidated parking. And connects to sustainable ways to get around – using active travel and public transport.
The hub has over 100 EV charge points and the infrastructure to install more. It has secure stores for 150 bikes. A parcel hub to reduce the travel of delivery vehicles in the area. As well as changing facilities, visitor parking and 30 spaces for car share clubs.
The hub is next to one of the main roads in and out of the city and is well-connected to public transport routes. As well as new routes to cycle, walk and wheel into the city centre. It's a low-carbon construction, has 400 solar cells on its roof and over 400m2 of living green wall.
The green walls climb the whole eight stories of the hub. Their plants acting as natural air filters. Each year, 1m2 of plants can absorb 2.3kg of carbon dioxide (CO2) and produce 1.7kg of oxygen. As well as filtering other toxins such as nitrogen dioxide (NO2) and microparticles. These toxins can damage our health. Causing and worsening a range of heart and lung health issues.
Embedding green infrastructure in new development
The hub’s green walls make use of its scale to create vast and compact vertical gardens. As well as filtering the air, they’re great for biodiversity. Providing habitats for nesting birds and year-round blossom for pollinators. They also screen the car park and reduce light spill at night. And they help to reduce heat stress by cooling the building and the air around it.
The planter modules are wind resistant to 140mph and can expand in extreme weather. They’re fire retardant and use only natural growing mediums. On side walls planters made from UK recycled material hold a mix of climbers and more dense, bushy plants. They’ll cover steel mesh in the walls as they grow.
Next to the hub is Ancoats Green. It joins the hub and new homes to foot, cycle and public transport routes. Promoting green travel and creating a busy community space.
Designed to be climate resilient, the renewed park can absorb and store water. Sustainable drainage systems (SuDS) help to manage surface water. Paths with porous surfaces slow the flow of rainwater. So it can soak away or run off into wetland. This can reduce the amount of water going into sewers and help to lower the risk of flooding. Nature-based solutions (NbS) – such as trees and raingardens – blend into the park design.
The park kept its mature trees. They continue to support diverse ecosystems under the shelter of their canopy. New native and flowering fruit trees soak up rainwater and form a community orchard. The raingardens are wetland – planted with grasses, alpines, perennials and flowering bulbs. These plants can cope with wet and dry spells and a range of species promotes biodiversity. An added boost for wildlife is almost 3,000m2 of wildflower meadow.
The sustainable design reuses materials. Reclaimed granite setts from Albert Square are re-laid here. Salvaged concrete from the removal of a nearby bridge creates seating. As does stone from the Prussia Canal arm, that once ran through the site.
As the redevelopment of the area continues the green will grow. Joining up with new low-traffic, green streets. Giving more homes easy access to nature, active travel and green space.
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Further info
Find more on our work to create a liveable, biodiverse and resilient city. It’s our aim to be a zero-carbon city by 2038.
Find out more about EV charging and the Ancoats Mobility Hub.