A town that will make you lose weight?

Imagine if your town was designed to help you lose weight.

OK, living somewhere where you are encouraged to ditch the car and walk or cycle everywhere may seem like some people’s worst nightmare.

But Prince Charles is so concerned about the rising obesity epidemic in the UK he’s given his backing to such a custom-built community – and even chipped in £20m from his own charity to get the scheme under way.

Specifically designed to look after the health of its residents, the Prince’s Foundation plans to construct the new ‘Trim Town’ near Cumnock in Ayrshire, Scotland.

Possibly named Knockdown after a nearby farm, it will have more than 300 homes, all within five minutes’ walking distance of shops and other amenities.

So why do we need it? Well, the foundation’s chief executive Hank Dittmar believes towns these days make losing weight and staying healthy more difficult.

He said: “This is how towns were designed for a thousand years to allow people to walk around easily.

“But since the Second World War, when car use became more widespread, we have lost that. They have been designed in a way that encourages car use, and we hope we can start reversing that by providing an example of what can be done.”

The project will cost around £45m to make, with a consortium involving Historic Scotland, The National Heritage Memorial Fund, Save Britain’s Heritage coming up with the rest of the money.
Once the designs have been finalised they will push for planning permission.

So, will cars be banned from the new town?

Dittmar said: “That’s not feasible in a rural area, but we do want people to leave their cars at home more.”
He also stressed that the project will end up as yet another toy town or soulless housing estate.

He said: “We want to highlight the need to build for healthier lifestyles. There will be an emphasis on cycle-ways and on pedestrian walkways in the new t

Source: Times Online