In my experience, in urban areas, 90%+ of the time, shared footpaths (translation for international readers: pavements/sidewalks) where pedestrians and cycling are mixed is not the best solution.So, how do we get to a point where road authorities, private developers and consultants stop using them? How do we get politicians to the point where they will fight against them?These shared footpaths are widely disliked and cause more conflict than other designs that get focused on by some, but there are still too many examples of them being seen as the default rather than the exception, where space is truly limited or on short links off main routes or in rural areas where shared paths make sense.Sometimes campaigners say shared space is used just to protect space for cars, and thats true some of the time, but often the most frustrating thing is that shared footpaths are often used where there are no space constraints. Wide open spaces, or just where layouts could have been designed differently, without affecting motorists.Some even see the spaces as pedestrian priority zones, but the reality is that they are not that legally or in practice.I thought that at this stage there would be less dependence on them, but designers are still using them as the first option in many cases. How do we move beyond this? Suggestions and insight are really welcome on this, including privately if people dont want to comment publicly.