Streetmeter
What is it?
Streetmeter is a free web-based tool for analysing the performance of street designs in terms of health, mobility, economy, environment, and social value.
Why is it useful?
It supports evidence-based planning by quantifying how street design affects different performance values and users. It helps planners and decision-makers understand, compare, and communicate the impacts of current or proposed street layouts.
Who should use it?
It is recommended primarily for transportation planners and urban designers, but it is also useful for municipalities, developers, and researchers. The tool helps professionals explain the effects of street design to politicians, citizens, and other stakeholders.
How to use it?
Streetmeter allows users to input data about a street’s dimensions, design, and use, and instantly receive performance evaluations across five key value areas: health, mobility, economy, environment, and social life. The input is divided into categories such as:
- Street information (name, type, area type)
- Widths (pedestrian clear zones, lanes)
- Design elements (trees, benches, crossings)
- Use (traffic levels, on-street parking, pedestrian/bike/public transport usage)
From this, Streetmeter produces output values like air quality, noise levels, traffic safety, greenery’s oxygen production, public seating access, stormwater capacity, and economic indicators like retail turnover and parking revenue.
It also evaluates performance from the perspective of different user groups (e.g., children, people with disabilities, cyclists), and assigns a Streetmetric score (1–5 stars) for easy comparison between streets.
The tool is available at www.streetmeter.net, works in four languages (EN, FR, DE, SV), and requires only a browser – no installation or license is needed. It’s been tested in planning processes and appreciated for its ability to validate assumptions and visualisevisualize trade-offs in design.
Example of good practices
In 2024, the municipality of the Swedish city Gävle worked on a street development plan outlining a long-term vision for how the city’s streets should evolve. Alternative designs were developed and analysed using Streetmeter, with the results presented in tables that highlighted changes across the tool’s five categories. The evaluation served as the basis for discussion. The clear presentation of the positive values associated with the proposed transformation ultimately led to a decision to test the suggested design for Södra Kungsgatan through a temporary transformation.
This tool was developed by Spacescape.
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