The International Federation of Pedestrians launches “Streets for People: Policy proposals to get us where we need to be,” a new policy document presenting eight priorities to elevate walking and pedestrian advocacy during the UN Decade for Sustainable Transport 2026–2035.
Walking already sustains billions of daily journeys worldwide. It connects people to public transport, workplaces, schools and services, while supporting public health, social inclusion and climate action. Yet despite its central role in mobility systems, walking remains systematically under-recognised in transport policy, planning frameworks and investment priorities.
The UN Decade for Sustainable Transport provides a critical opportunity to change this. Through this document, IFP proposes a set of eight concrete policy priorities that governments, international institutions and civil society should address to ensure walking becomes a fully integrated pillar of sustainable mobility systems.
The eight priorities address key structural gaps in transport policy, including:
- recognising walking as a core transport mode in national and local policy frameworks
- establishing enforceable standards for pedestrian safety and accessibility
- strengthening walking access to public transport systems
- integrating care, gender and life-course perspectives in mobility policy
- recognising pedestrian infrastructure as climate adaptation and resilience infrastructure
- creating dedicated and transparent funding for walking
- improving data systems and indicators for pedestrian environments
- strengthening and protecting pedestrian advocacy ecosystems worldwide
Together, these priorities form a global agenda to ensure that walking is properly recognised as fundamental transport infrastructure, particularly in regions where it already represents the most common form of everyday mobility but remains largely invisible in policy and investment decisions.
The report also calls on governments, development banks, climate funds and civil society organisations to work together to build the institutional, financial and knowledge frameworks needed to support pedestrian mobility during the decade.
Walking is not a marginal activity. It is the foundation of equitable, resilient and low-carbon mobility systems. Walking is core feature of caring infrastructure.
Read the full document here: