The COVID-19 pandemic has changed people's relationship with their local neighbourhoods.
Infrastructure Australia's Infrastructure beyond COVID-19 report shows that four million people were working from home during the pandemic (about one third of the workforce) and there is a strong desire to increase traditional working from home patterns by at least once a week.38
With significant numbers of people still working from home, the in-person experiences of the workplace are being replaced with localised in-person experiences with family and neighbours. This is putting infrastructure and services under strain in some places.
" The COVID-19 pandemic has changed people's relationship with their local neighbourhoods. "
Many city neighbourhoods have thrived through the pandemic. This is particularly true of those that invite walking and cycling and are near green and blue urban spaces that support local retail, services and recreation facilities. However, urban fringe areas, which are highly car-dependent, have not fared as well.
It is essential to ensure that what has been learned during the pandemic is applied to future and regenerated neighbourhoods, and that infrastructure projects reflect this redistribution of activity.
Concepts such as the '20-minute neighbourhood', where people can meet most of their daily needs within a 20-minute walk from home, with cycling and public transport options, are increasingly relevant to planning decisions.39