WallWalk

WallWalk group is composed of architects, lecturers in architecture, archeologists, planners, historians, artists, both italian and foreign, who love Rome and believe in a vision: realize WallWalk, a new and expanded public space, a long and charming bicycle and pedestrian path that skirts the Aurelian Walls running along the whole perimeter.

A shielded and sustainable path that promotes use of one of the most important monument of the city, unique for its character.

The Aurelian Walls in Rome have always been a symbolic and historical permanence through the long and complex history of the city. Many parts of the urban landscape of Rome have been lost or have been transformed over the centuries, but the enclosure of walls built by the emperor Aurelian in just five years , 270-275 , arrived intact to this day . The walled perimeter, originallya defensive element of the city, has now become a kind of linear tape that runs throughRome , sometimes incorporated into the urban fabric , sometimes accompanied by arteries of mobility, and sometimes free and visible within a natural landscape. Its character and visibility changes depending on the crossings, but the Aurelian Walls retain their charm,symbolic and monumental integrity because of the unique character and highly recognizable identity.

Today it is almost impossible to cover the entire length of the walls , almost 19 km long .There are interruptions, crossings,  obstacles and tortuous paths that make a full fruition difficult. The interior walkway is accessible only for a short distance , corresponding to the Museum of the Walls , a dark place visited by many tourists who come to our city. Some of the most monumental gates , like the Porta Maggiore , are isolated within roundabouts vehicular mobility . Some places, important in the history of Rome, for example  the breach of Porta Pia, are left to themselves along the perimeter of the walls, without a clue of ​​the potential development of such urban heritage.

This initiative aims at giving the Aurelian Walls  the importance that they should have for the city of Rome , through the proposal of a continuous pedestrian and cycle path , sustainable and secure -WallWalk - that would allow visitors to enjoy one of the biggest and most important monuments of the city unique in its scale.

The WallWalkProject is:

- A proposal aiming tosensitizegovernments and agencies to enhance the Aurelian Walls, so as to make them a heroic monument of the city;

- A proposal that promotes sustainable pedestrian and cycle mobility around the historic center of Rome and involves urban areas that are now a bitdefiladed;

- A proposal which relates the cycle/pedestrian mobility with major interchanges with the public and private transport ( metro stations , urban metro rail , parking lots , etc.);

- A proposal that will integrate with the existing network of bicycle and pedestrian paths (for example,along theTiber ) and with the extensive green areas crossed by the Aurelian Walls (Villa Borghese , Villa Ada );

- A proposal that would allow tourists to visit Rome by bicycle through new perspectives, making them comfortably reach the main archaeological, architectural and artistic sites of the city;

Based on the model of many previous successful experiences, first of all the famous High Line in NYC, where an old disused railway line has become one of the most enjoyed public spaces for the citizens, or the recent proposal of the Mayor of London to build a network of raised cycle paths (Foster project) ,WallWalk has the ambition to propose a new and expanded public space for the city, a long and fascinating pedestrian and cycle path , running along the Aurelian Walls for the entire perimeter of the same.

Rome will have a Walk of the Walls , a unique urban place , which attracts both citizens of different districts of the city and also tourists, so that they can have a more complete experience of Rome and its monuments.

It is also possible to implement this project.

The Aurelian Walls almost always have a green area of respect that is little used by the citizens. This band can easily be made ​​safe and provide infrastructure and basic services for it. The route will then have to adapt to individual situations from time to time , find points of safe crossing, becoming a raised path when necessary and appropriate, pedestrianize short stretches of roads rather than , quite simply, widen existing sidewalks and protect them from the intrusion of cars . The path can flow both inside and outside of the walls , use existing crossings and always be adjacent to them , without ever having to affect the existing historical and monumental artefact.Where possible, the pedestrian path will take advantage of the interior walkway , possibly overhead , while the bike path will always remain on the outside.

The association WallWalk was composed to this end,  andaims to promote the project with an innovative and creative approach. The WallWalk group is composed of architects, archaeologists, planners , historians of the city , artists, both Italian and foreign , who love Rome and believe in this project. The groupWallWalkProject* it is the promoter of this initiative, which will be presented, discussed and shared with the various levels of the City , with the Superintendents and with all the organizations that operate in this sector. The WallWalkProject group will propose a feasibility study which will define the possible critical conditions, develop solutions for the case studies, define the possible phases of implementation, and develop an economic program.

To begin with, the WallWalkProject needs the support and contribution of all those who believe in this initiative , individuals, public institutions or private companies , who will all become "Friends of WallWalk".

Rome, April 2014

*WallWalkProjectGroup: Jan Gadeyne, Mariangela Menna, Maria Federica Ottone, Lorenzo Pignatti, Carolina Vaccaro