Speaker
Description
The COVID-19 pandemic has been a critical juncture for the fields of urban planning, urban design, and transportation studies. There has been an increase in active modes of travel such as walking and cycling, especially amongst people who previously relied on private vehicles and public transportation (Rice, 2020). A renewed dialogue has begun about what post-pandemic cities should look like. The ongoing COVID-19 pandemic has disrupted all aspects of human life and affected a variety of disciplines, including urban planning and design. The pandemic is touted as an opportunity to rethink neighborhood design and has raised challenging questions for planners and policymakers about the issues of density and mobility (de Rosa & Mannarini, 2021). There is an urgent need to design cities that accommodate pandemic-control measures while attending to people’s daily needs, including access to outdoor spaces for physical, social, and mental well-being. These requirements for post-pandemic cities have positioned suburbs as a more attractive and viable alternative than compact urban areas. However, the conventional suburban model of low-density, automobile-centric development with fragmented streets cannot maintain high levels of accessibility within neighborhoods. This study offers an alternative, evidence-based suburban design model for post-pandemic cities. Quantitative examinations of case studies in Dubai and Abu Dhabi, along with illustrations of potential redesign options, show how suburbs can be made more accessible to pedestrian traffic.
The study provides a new approach to suburban studies that combines morphological mapping, network analysis, and quantified renewed scenarios for future suburban design. Morphological mapping and network analysis diagnose the accessibility levels in a variety of suburban samples. The redesigned or renewed suburban scenarios are then developed based on the lessons and quantified outcomes learned from the highly accessible suburban samples. This investigation is relevant for urban planning and design scholarship because it contributes to the evolving literature that depicts suburbs as a potent ground for innovation, rather than demonizing them. This approach or process of inquiry can be applied to urban areas worldwide to study the performance of built forms with the aim of retrofitting existing fabrics or redesigning new ones.
References
de Rosa, A.S. and Mannarini, T., 2021. Covid-19 as an “invisible other” and socio-spatial distancing within a one-metre individual bubble. Urban Design International, 26(4), pp.370–390.
Rice, L., 2020. After Covid-19: Urban design as spatial medicine. Urban Design International, pp.1–6.
| Keywords | Suburbs; Urban Form; Accessibility; Post-Pandemic Cities; Future Cities |
|---|---|
| Best Congress Paper Award | Yes |
