Abstract
What happens when you temporarily close a street to through traffic? Do people start interacting more, treating the street as a place for walking, cycling or even play? Does the street feel safer? Do neighbours talk more? How do residents feel about the street closure? Are they desperate to get back to ‘normal’, or do they think the inconvenience of not being able to ‘drive through’ is outweighed by the reduction in traffic volume? This paper will present the results of a study examining what happened in Ōtautahi Christchurch when a street was closed for a number of weeks for infrastructure repairs. It will reflect on how this relates to the Superblock concept, and how street repairs can create the opportunity to trial ‘Superblocks’ and develop community and enhance wellbeing.