50 Times Architects Outdid Themselves And Came Up With Something So Thoughtful That It Could Only Be Labeled As ‘Friendly Architecture’

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Being friendly can go a long way. Even if you only have a brief interaction with someone, showing a bit of kindness can make their day and inspire them to spread a little more positivity as well. And contrary to what you might believe, people and animals are not the only ones who can be friendly. Apparently architecture can be too.

Allow me to introduce you to Friendly Architecture. This subreddit celebrates all of the people-friendly places in the world, from beautiful cycle paths to train tunnels that block anyone from falling onto the tracks. We’ve gathered some of our favorite posts from this friendly group, so you too can appreciate the brilliance of these architects who were thinking ahead. Be sure to upvote all of the pics of infrastructure that you would give a hearty “hello!” to if you came across them, and then let us know in the comments where the friendliest architecture you’ve ever encountered was. Keep reading to also find an interview with Honor Hingston-Cox, the creator of Friendly Architecture, and then if you’re looking for another Bored Panda article appreciating great design after finishing this list, we’ve got you covered right here.

#1 Wildlife Overpass, Trans-Canada Highway, Banff National Park, Canada. The 38 Passes And Fencing Have Reduced Wildlife-Vehicle Collisions By More Than 80%

50 Times Architects Outdid Themselves And Came Up With Something So Thoughtful That It Could Only Be Labeled As ‘Friendly Architecture’

50 Times Architects Outdid Themselves And Came Up With Something So Thoughtful That It Could Only Be Labeled As ‘Friendly Architecture’

#1 Wildlife Overpass, Trans-Canada Highway, Banff National Park, Canada. The 38 Passes And Fencing Have Reduced Wildlife-Vehicle Collisions By More Than 80%

#2 In Norway You Get A Small Amount Of Money For Recycling Bottles/Cans. They’re Often Collected By Poor People, Homeless Etc. A Lot Of Our Trash Cans Has These Holders Around Them So People Don’t Have To Search Through The Trash To Collect Them

#3 Wheelchair Friendly Sandbox

#4 Homeless Bench, Vancouver, Canada

#5 Parent + Child Library Carrel, So You Can Do Your Research And Keep Your Little One Occupied. Fairfield Library, Virginia, USA

#6 It’s Not For People But It’s Still Friendly

#7 They Put Rails Under The Benches In This Park So You Can Always Be In The Shadow

#8 Pool And Water Slide, Egmont Højskolen (“Folk High School”), Western Denmark

#9 In Case This Counts: Braille On The Rail To Describe The View

#10 Sympathetic Architecture

#11 Teetertotters Slotted Through The U.S.-Mexico Border Wall By Ronald Rael And Virginia San Fratello

#12 Turtle Tunnels In Japan, Protecting The Turtles Crossing Train Tracks And Stopping Trains From Derailing Due To Turtles!!

#13 Bioswale, Seattle Wa. (A Channel To Concentrate, Clean And Move Stormwater)

#14 Wheelchair Accessible Gardening. Used For Garden Therapy, Rehab, Hospice. Developed In Douvres-La-Délivrande, France

#15 Crab Migration Bridge, Christmas Island, Australia

#16 Green Man+, A Card & Traffic Light System To Give People More Time To Cross At Intersections, Singapore

#17 These Public Benches Are Reversible, So You Can Choose To Look At People, Or Boats

#18 Mini Door At Child’s Doctor’s Office, Neat Idea!

#19 Old City, Jerusalem Added 4km Of Wheelchair-Accessible Routes In 2019 (And Cleared It With Unesco)

#20 Super-Accessible Waterfront, Sirens Beach, Greece

#21 This Bus Stop Near My Home In Norway

#22 In Asia Nobody Has To Worry About Falling Into The Subway Tracks

#23 Bee Bricks: Bricks With Holes For Solitary Bees

#24 These Benches That Turn Into Tables

#25 Hedgehog Highway (Dolly Parton Called These Out This Week), UK

#26 Cover For Bicycle Saddle So It Doesn’t Get Wet When It Rains

#27 Modskool – Design Museum Winner For Best Architecture 2020, India

#28 Wall Of Kindness, Norwich, Vermont, USA

#29 A Bus Stop With Swings

#30 Circular Footbridge Over Roundabout, Shanghai

#31 This Drinking Fountain Allows You To Gill Your Bottle, And Saves The Extra Water For Passing Dogs

#32 Australian Wheelchair Swing!

#33 Safe Haven Baby Boxes

#34 A Friendly Urban Cycle Path In Girona

#35 This Gate Allowing Horses And Pedestrians Not Cars

#36 A Bridge Providing A Bench In The Fences In Shanghai

#37 Public Defibrillation Station, Adelaide, Australia

#38 This Anti-Climbing Fence On The” S*icide Bridge “(Colloquially) In A Small Town England. There Are Also Signs With Suicide Hotlines On Them. Not A Fun Part Of Architecture But Definitely Helpful/Saving Lives

#39 Amphibian Tunnel, Cycle Highway Of Eindhoven, Netherlands

#40 Trash Cans For Cyclists (Blikvanger), Netherlands

#41 Solar Park Bench With USB Charging Ports

#42 Wheelchair Resting Spot On A Long Hill. Also A Bench In A Pinch

#43 These Two Coin Lockers That Are Easily Accessible In A Wheelchair, Austria

#44 Recessed “Pause Space” For Those With Asd Providing An Opportunity To Control The Amount Of Incoming Information, UK

#45 Earthships, Passive Solar Earth Shelters Around The World

#46 Tiled Patches In Cracked Pavement, Lyon, France (By Ememem)

#47 The Fruit Bus Stops Of Nagasaki Prefecture (Designed To Showcase The Agricultural Output Of The Region)

#48 This Bench Also Works As A Xylophone. Also, No Dividers!

#49 The Tiles Around Our Apartment Complex Is Made Up Like The Enemies In Space Invaders, Sweden

#50 Giving Back To Pedestrians!