Friday Funday: Turning a City Street into a Giant Waterslide

Artist Luke Jerram recently installed a 300-foot waterslide on Park Street in Bristol, UK. The "Park and Slide" event was massively attended and wildly popular.

1 minute read

May 9, 2014, 9:00 AM PDT

By James Brasuell @CasualBrasuell


Bristol waterslide

Alan Levine / Flickr

"On Sunday May 4 Bristol artist Luke Jerram installed a giant 90m (300ft) water slide on Park Street in Bristol, UK for members of the public to slide down," reports David Thorpe. In total, 96,000 people applied to go down the slide—360 were selected. "The tickets became like Willy Wonka tickets," says Luke Jerram in the first video embedded below.

The slide was installed as part of a program called Making Sundays Special and the Bristol Art Weekender festival.

Some choice soundbites from the first video below:

  • "Using art as a way of bringing places alive."
  • "Nobody will be able to come down Park Street again without thinking, 'it's not just place for cars; it's a place for people to enjoy themselves.'"

The art project was funded in part through a Spacehive crowdfunding campaign.

Jerram will eventually provide instructions on how to make a slide, on the cheap, in any city, on his website.

Park and Slide Bristol [OFFICIAL VIDEO] from Cinematica Media on Vimeo.

Monday, May 5, 2014 in Sustainable Cities Collective

portrait of professional woman

I love the variety of courses, many practical, and all richly illustrated. They have inspired many ideas that I've applied in practice, and in my own teaching. Mary G., Urban Planner

I love the variety of courses, many practical, and all richly illustrated. They have inspired many ideas that I've applied in practice, and in my own teaching.

Mary G., Urban Planner

Get top-rated, practical training

Close-up of "Apartment for rent" sign in red text on black background in front of blurred building

Trump Administration Could Effectively End Housing Voucher Program

Federal officials are eyeing major cuts to the Section 8 program that helps millions of low-income households pay rent.

April 21, 2025 - Housing Wire

Logo for Planetizen Federal Action Tracker with black and white image of U.S. Capitol with water ripple overlay.

Planetizen Federal Action Tracker

A weekly monitor of how Trump’s orders and actions are impacting planners and planning in America.

April 23, 2025 - Diana Ionescu

Ken Jennings stands in front of Snohomish County Community Transit bus.

Ken Jennings Launches Transit Web Series

The Jeopardy champ wants you to ride public transit.

April 20, 2025 - Streetsblog USA

View of residential street in Los Angeles with palm trees and hazy city in distance.

Rebuilding Smarter: How LA County Is Guiding Fire-Ravaged Communities Toward Resilience

Los Angeles County is leading a coordinated effort to help fire-impacted communities rebuild with resilience by providing recovery resources, promoting fire-wise design, and aligning reconstruction with broader sustainability and climate goals.

April 27 - Los Angeles County Chief Sustainability Office

Entrance sign for San Jose-Santa Clara Regional wastewater treatment facility.

When Borders Blur: Regional Collaboration in Action

As regional challenges outgrow city boundaries, “When Borders Blur” explores how cross-jurisdictional collaboration can drive smarter, more resilient urban planning, sharing real-world lessons from thriving partnerships across North America.

April 27 - * A Placemaking Journal

Rendering of Penrose Roundabout in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

Philadelphia Is Expanding its Network of Roundabouts

Roundabouts are widely shown to decrease traffic speed, reduce congestion, and improve efficiency.

April 27 - WHYY