Swiss Review 2/2020

Swiss Review / April 2020 / No.2 29 From car-friendly to pedestrian-friendly Some 50,000 cars cross the Schulhausplatz intersection every day in the Aargau town of Baden. No one envies Baden for it. Nevertheless, the Swiss Heritage Society (SHS) has awarded the town this year’s prestigious Wakker Prize for architectural development and preservation. The reason? “Baden has chosen not to surrender to the traffic,” said the SHS. The town has been tireless in its efforts to improve its public spaces. Its centre is now free of traffic, with pedestrian-friendly streets and squares that make it a pleasant place to live. Historic parks and gardens are carefully maintained, and new public spaces have been created in urban development areas. The once car-friendly town of Baden has, in other words, been given back to the people. (MUL) Theaterplatz – a new public space on the edge of the town centre. What used to be a car park is now an open space where people can enjoy the view over the River Limmat. Photo: Gaëtan Bally The town of Baden is nestled in the Limmat Valley near the Jura foothills. Photo: Gaëtan Bally Cars, buses and people used to have to fight their way through here. Weite Gasse is now a pedestrian- friendly street. Photo: Pierre Marmy heimatschutz.ch/wakkerpreis