Replacing Concrete with Greenery? Get in line!

New York City's High Line

From Detroit's abandoned train station to Chicago's old train tracks, more and more cities are transforming their elevated railways, roads and viaducts into green spaces.  

The latest city to join this craze is Madrid! The park here, called Madrid Río, is more than six miles long, and it transforms a formerly neglected area in the middle of Spain’s capital.

Madrid resident, Pilar López, 73, has lived for more than a half-century in an apartment in a housing project nearby, suffering the fumes and noise from the highway.  She describes to Michael Kimmelman of the New York Times how this park has changed her life.

Madrid's Rio Park

“This is like new lungs for us. When the highway was here, I sat on my sofa and watched television all day. Now I feel healthy again because I walk with my friends in the park for hours.”

With the rising biophilia trend, It's no surprise that cities across the world are creating nurturing spaces from their residents to play, walk and enjoy.  It's a good way to foster human advancement on this finite planet.

@KatieGMG Garden Media Group