Swanson School of Engineering

For my stay here in Florence, I am living on Via dei Bardi and have noticed how the street functions from the balcony of our apartment. From the point of view of a Renaissance town planner, Via dei Bardi was clearly designed less for humans than many other streets here in Florence’s as you can tell it’s made for cars. The road is wider than most other nearby roads, and cars seem to have the upper hand over pedestrians. On the street there is constant flowing traffic with many cars and other vehicles driving by consistently throughout all hours of the day. Unlike the narrower medieval streets where buildings press up against the road, defined sidewalks separate people from the road and allow them to walk without conflicting with traffic. The buildings themselves reflect mixed use with shops like grocery stores and other restaurants on the ground level and residential apartments above. The street is active and functional but does not have the pedestrian-first design of much of Florence’s historic core.