We are excited to announce the release of two brand new handbooks, How to Implement Street Transformations and How to Evaluate Street Transformations. Reviewed by experts and practitioners from over 20 cities across the globe, these handbooks look closely at three stages of street transformation projects—pop-up, interim, and capital construction—and serve as critical supplements to the design guidance provided in the Global Street Design Guide (2016).
How to Implement Street Transformations outlines the steps from initial site selection, to planning, implementing, and maintaining a pop-up or interim street transformation. It includes many case studies that share lessons taken directly from the experience of city practitioners.
How to Evaluate Street Transformations offers cities a new way of measuring, evaluating, and communicating the impact of pop-up and interim projects related to road safety and its co-benefits. The handbook demonstrates how collecting and evaluating data can help build community support, trial new materials, improve designs, and accelerate the pace of change.
The content of the handbooks draws on GDCI’s experience implementing community-first road safety transformations to improve mobility choices, add quality public open spaces, support community-driven street designs, and increase accessibility and comfort for street users around the world.
Geared towards a diverse audience of public sector leaders, practitioners, local NGOs, students, community advocacy groups, and local businesses, these handbooks seek to change the decades-long practice of implementing and evaluating projects based on car-oriented metrics. Using the approachable methodologies outlined in these guides, cities can redirect their focus to creating the best streets for pedestrians and active mobility users of all ages and abilities.
Both handbooks are available for free download, and they are available in English, Spanish, and Portuguese.
Click on the version below to download the free pdf!
Scaling up Streets for Kids: Highlights from the 2025 Streets for Kids Leadership Accelerator
In 2025, GDCI brought together a selected group of 10 city teams working to scale up their efforts to create more and better Streets for Kids in Brazil, Colombia, and Ecuador through multiple projects, programs, and policies. Here’s a look back and key learnings from a two-month online capacity-building program.
In October 2024, the Streets for Kids project was inaugurated in the Jordão neighborhood in Recife, Brazil, a community where children faced multiple challenges accessing safe and high-quality public spaces. Heavy rains, frequent flooding, and landslide risks often made their journey to school dangerous and unpredictable. Throughout the process, children, caregivers, school staff, and residents were engaged to co-create solutions that improve access to schools, supporte outdoor play and social connection, and set a precedent for future child-focused street transformations in Recife.
Creating Safer Spaces for Play: Tackling Air Pollution in Accra
In collaboration with the Korle Klottey Municipality and with support from the Clean Air Fund, GDCI launched the Removing Pollution from Play project in late 2023, with the aim to tackle air pollution in school environments by implementing practical solutions, raising awareness, and empowering communities to advocate for cleaner air. In March 2025, the completed intervention was inaugurated, and the new safe play space now serves over 150 students in Accra.
