"Applied Science, Faculty of"@en . "Architecture and Landscape Architecture (SALA), School of"@en . "DSpace"@en . "UBCV"@en . "Xia, Xinke"@en . "2010-01-08T01:45:51Z"@en . "2006"@en . "Master of Advanced Studies in Landscape Architecture - MASLA"@en . "University of British Columbia"@en . "Pedestrian environments influence our everyday experience of life in cities. The\r\nvitality and image of a city is often gauged by the level of pedestrian activity on the\r\nstreets (Robertson, K. 1994). In recent years, an important aspect of the revitalization\r\nmovement in city centers has been to focus on the improvement of the quality of\r\npedestrian environments on city streets.\r\nPedestrian behavior study is an useful methodology that has been advocated by\r\nWhyte (1980) and Gehl (1996) in exploring the relationship between people, activity\r\nand their environment. This thesis will examine some of the main outdoor pedestrian\r\nareas in the central business district of Nanjing, a provincial capital city in eastern\r\nChina. Through a series of pedestrian studies and on-site surveys, this research\r\naims to explore the factors that influence the way that pedestrians use streets in a\r\ncommercial environment, and find some solutions and implications for encouraging\r\nsocial activities in the relevant study areas. The author also hopes that this report on\r\nthe pedestrian environment will one day prove useful on a referential basis for the\r\nredevelopment and revitalization of Nanjing City."@en . "https://circle.library.ubc.ca/rest/handle/2429/17715?expand=metadata"@en . "E X P L O R A T I O N OF F O U R F A C T O R S I N F L U E N C I N G P E O P L E ' S S O C I A L A C T I V I T I E S I N C O M M E R C I A L P E D E S T R I A N E N V I R O N M E N T S : A C A S E S T U D Y OF N A N J I N G C I T Y by X I N K E X I A B . L . A . , Nanjing Forestry University, China 2002 A THESIS S U B M I T T E D I N P A R T I A L F U L F I L L M E N T OF T H E R E Q U I R E M E N T S F O R T H E D E G R E E OF M A S T E R OF A D V A N C E D STUDIES I N L A N D S C A P E A R C H I T E C T U R E I N T H E F A C U L T Y OF G R A D U A T E STUDIES T H E U N I V E R S I T Y OF BRITISH C O L U M B I A J A N U A R Y 2006 \u00C2\u00A9 X I N K E X I A , 2006 A B S T R A C T : Pedestrian environments influence our everyday experience of life in cities. The vitality and image of a city is often gauged by the level of pedestrian activity on the streets(Robertson.K.1994). In recent years, an important aspect of the revitalization movement in city centers has been to focus on the improvement of the quality of pedestrian environments on city streets. Pedestrian behavior study is an useful methodology that has been advocated by Whyte(1980) and Gehl(1996) in exploring the relationship between people, activity and their environment. This thesis w i l l examine some of the main outdoor pedestrian areas in the central business district of Nanjing, a provincial capital city in eastern China. Through a series of pedestrian studies and on-site surveys, this research aims to explore the factors that influence the way that pedestrians use streets in a commercial environment, and find some solutions and implications for encouraging social activities in the relevant study areas. The author also hopes that this report on the pedestrian environment wi l l one day prove useful on a referential basis for the redevelopment and revitalization of Nanjing City. u TABLE OF CONTENTS Abstract i i Table of Contents i i i List of Tables v i List of Figures v i i List of Diagrams ix Acknowledgement \u00E2\u0080\u00A2 x C H A P T E R O N E : Introduction 1 1.1 Background \u00E2\u0080\u00A2 1 1.1.1 Social Interaction in Public Spaces 1 1.1.2 Background of Situation in China 2 1.2 Objectives of the Study ' 4 1.3 Research Questions --4 1.4 Scope of Investigation and Focus of the Study 4 1.4.1 Scope of Investigation 4 1.4.2 Focus of the Study 5 C H A P T E R T W O : Literature Review 6 2.1 Introduction of Some Representative Research Studies 6 2.1.1 Whill iam H.Whyte 6 2.1.2 Jan Gehl 7 2.2 The Four Influencing Factors and Relevant Literature Research 9 2.2.1 Pedestrian Density 9 2.2.2 Quantity and Quality of Seating Spaces 9 2.2.3 Attractiveness and Entertainment 10 2.2.4 Dimension of Pedestrian Environment 11 C H A P T E R T H R E E : Study Area Background 12 3.1 Background Introduction 12 3.2 Introduction of the Sub-areas within the Study Area 15 3.3 General Introduction of Pedestrian Activities in Study area 18 C H P A T E R F O U R : Methodology 21 4.1 General Introduction of the Study Process '. 21 4.2 Review of Pedestrian Studies 21 4.3 Detailed Methods Applied in the Evaluation Process 23 4.3.1 Other Influencing Factors 23 4.3.2 Introduction ; 23 4.3.3 Detailed Process of Recording Data 24 4.3.4 Rationale of the Evaluation Process 26 i i i '4.3.5 Summary 28 C H A P T E R F I V E : Research Report 29 5.1 Social Activity 30 5.1.1 The Intensity of Social Activities at Different Time of a Day 30 5.1.2 The Intensity of Social Activities in Each Sub-area 30 5.1.3 Brief Summary 32 5.2 Pedestrian Density 33 5.2.1 Pedestrian Density at Different Time of a Day 33 5.2.2 Pedestrian Density in Each Sub-area 36 5.2.3 Pedestrian Flow Distributions at the Site Scale 37 5.2.4 Pedestrian Density and Social Activities 38 5.3 Quantity and Quality of Seating Space 39 5.3.1 Quantity Evaluation 39 5.3.1.10n-peak Observation 39 5.3.1.2 Comparison with conventional quantity requirements 39 5.3.2 Quality Evaluation 41 5.3.2.lGeneral Evaluation 41 5.3.2.2 Off-peak Observation 47 5.3.3 Brief Summary 48 5.3.4 Quantity and Quality of Seating Space and Social Activities 48 5.4 Attractiveness and Entertainment 48 5.5 Dimension of Pedestrian Environment 49 5.5.1 Street capacity 49 5.5.2 Observation of the Intensity of Social Activities at the Five Street Corners 50 5.5.3 Dimension of Pedestrian Environments and Social Activities 53 5.6 Noted Observations Regarding Pedestrians' Walking, Sitting, and Standing Behaviors -53 5.7 Chapter Summary 54 C H P A T E R SIX: Findings and Recommendations 55 6.1 Summaries of the Findings from the Study 55 6.2 Recommendations for Commercial Pedestrian Environments 57 6.2.1 Introduction 57 6.2.2 Recommendations and Strategies 57 6.3 Conclusion 66 6:3.1 Summaries of the Study 66 6.3.2 Indications for Future Research 66 Bibliography 67 iv Appendix 1: Pedestrian Behavior Mapping-North Part of Zhenghong Pedestrian Street...70 Appendix 2: Pedestrian Behavior Mapping-South Part of Zhenghong Pedestrian Street.. 71 Appendix 3: Pedestrian Behavior Mapping-West Part of Zhenghong Pedestrian Street.. .72 Appendix 4 : Pedestrian Behavior Mapping-East Part of Zhenghong Pedestrian Street... .73 Appendix 5: Pedestrian Behavior Mapping-Central Part of Zhenghong Pedestrian Street 74 Appendix 6: Pedestrian Behavior Mapping-Xinbai Plaza 75 Appendix 7: Pedestrian Behavior Mapping-Zhongyang Street Corner 76 Appendix 8: Pedestrian Behavior Mapping-Dongfang Plaza 77 Appendix 9: Pedestrian Behavior Mapping-Jingying Street Corner 78 Appendix 10: Pedestrian Behavior Mapping-Leifulai Plaza 79 Appendix a: Pedestrian Flow Mapping- North Part of Zhenghong Pedestrian Street 80 Appendix b: Pedestrian Flow Mapping -South Part of Zhenghong Pedestrian Street 81 Appendix c: Pedestrian Flow Mapping-West Part of Zhenghong Pedestrian Street 82 Appendix d: Pedestrian Flow Mapping-East Part of Zhenghong Pedestrian Street 83 Appendix e: Pedestrian Flow Mapping-Central Part of Zhenghong Pedestrian Street 84 Appendix f: Pedestrian Flow Mapping-Xinbai Plaza 85 Appendix g: Pedestrian Flow Mapping-Zhongyang Street Corner 86 Appendix h: Pedestrian Flow Mapping-Dongfang Plaza 87 Appendix i : Pedestrian Flow Mapping-Jingying Street Corner 88 Appendix j : Pedestrian Flow Mapping-Leifulai Plaza 89 Lis t of Tables: Table2.1: The four measurements and their corresponding researchers 12 Table4.1: Pedestrian studies used in this research and researchers of relevance 22 Table5.1: Pedestrian density of each sub-area 37 Table5.2: Quantity of seating in each sub-area 40 Table5.3: Attractiveness and entertainment in pedestrian environments 48 Table5.4: The width of pedestrian environments and highest pedestrian flow rate of each sub-area 50 Table5.5: The intensity of social activities at the five street corner plazas 52 Table5.6: General characteristics of pedestrian's walking, standing and sitting 53 vi Lis t of Figures: Figured. 1: Amagertorv: a pedestrian street in Copenhagen. 2 Figurel.2: A pedestrian environment in urban center of Nanjing, China 3 Figure2.1: Chenghuang Miao traditional commercial street, at Hefei, An 'hui province 11 Figure3.1: Nanjing's location in China 12 Figure3.2: The location of Xinjiekou and some other historical remains in the city 13 Figure3.3: Xinjiekou in earlyl930s 14 Figure3.4: Overlook the Xinjiekou district 14 Figure3.5: Open space distribution map 16 Figure 3.6: Land use map 17 Figure 3.7: Public transit map 18 Figure3.8: Pedestrian walking on Zhenghong pedestrian street 19 Figure3.9: People standing around the commercial show at the center of Zhenghong pedestrian street 19 Figure3.10: People standing around the commercial show at the entrance of Zhongyang department store 19 Figure3.11: People standing at the entrance of a restaurant on Zhenghong pedestrian street 20 Figure 3.12: People sitting on a shrub planter on Zhenghong pedestrian street 20 Figure3.13: Children playing in the fountain at Zhongyang street corner 20 Figure5.1: Overview photo of each sub-area .29 Figure5.2: The area with densest levels of pedestrian flow on Zhenghong pedestrian street 38 Figure5.3: Sittable niches in the west part 42 Figure5.4: Wood benches and tree planters in the north part 42 Figure5.5: Tree planters in the west part 42 Figure5.6: Wood benches in the south part 42 Figure5.7: Tree planters in the east part 42 Figure5.8: Shrub planters 43 Figure5.9: The glass roof at the center of Zhenghong pedestrian street 43 Figure5.10: Shrub planters under the glass roof 43 Figure5.11: Wood chairs under the glass roof 43 Figure5.12: The huge canopy tree at the center of Leifulai plaza 44 Figure5.13: Movable stools under the canopy tree 44 Figure5.14: Feature steps along the edge of Leifulai plaza 44 Figure5.15: Wood benches along the edge of Leifulai plaza .44 Figure5.16: Round stones distributed around the fountains at Zhongyang street corner 45 Figure5.17: Wood chairs along the curb edge of Xinbai plaza 45 vii Figure5.18: Wood benches along the curb edge of Jinying street corner 46 Figure5.19: Shrub planters at Dongfang plaza .46 Figure5.20: The sittable side facing the main pedestrian flow was first occupied by pedestrians 47 Figure5.21: Wide and empty Dongfang plaza 51 Figure5.22: Wide and empty Dongfang plaza 51 Figure5.23: Empty Xinbai plaza 51 Figure5.24: Empty Xinbai plaza 51 Figure6.1: A type of unbalanced distribution of commercial services 56 Figure6.2: Large-scale commercial services with face to face orientation 56 Figure6.3: Design a large entrance setback for large-scale commercial services 58 Figure6.4: Position seating spaces at places without being disturbed by pedestrian flows 69 Figure6.5: A flexible strategy to arrange the position of rest spaces 60 Figure6.6: Basic seating configurations encouraging group interactions 61 Figure6.7: Benches with two backsides deep provide more seating opportunities 61 Figure6.8: Recommended seating configuration in the middle of a pedestrian street 62 Figure6.9: Apply detailed paving to introduce scale to a place 63 Figure6.10: Apply the floorscape to divide the rest space from the movement space 63 Figure6.11: Apply vertical landscape elements to reinforce the three-dimensional effect 64 Figure6.12: Interactive sonic fountain 65 Figure6.13: Activated floorscape lighting 65 Figure6.14: The art wall with both hollowed-out and protruding surfaces 66 V l l l Lis t of Diagrams: Diagram4.1: General flow chart of this study 21 Diagram5.1: The number of people sitting and standing at the north part of Zhenghong pedestrian street from 7:00 am-12:00pm on Monday, Apr i l 11,2005 , 30 Diagram5.2: The number of stationary activities on Saturday, Apr i l 30 at 5:30 pm 31 Diagram5.3: The proportion of pedestrians involved in stationary activities at 5:30 pm on Saturday, Apr i l 30.. . . 31 Diagram5.4: The number of stationary activities in each sub-area show on the base map of the study area 32 Diagram5.5: Two way pedestrian counts per hour and per minute at west entrance of Zhenghong pedestrian street 34 Diagram5.6: Two way pedestrian counts per hour and per minute at north entrance of Zhenghong pedestrian street 34 Diagram5:7: Two way pedestrian counts per hour and per minute at east entrance of Zhenghong pedestrian street 34 Diagram5.8: Two way pedestrian counts per hour and per minute at south entrance of Zhenghong pedestrian street 34 Diagram5.9:. Two way pedestrian counts per hour and per minute at Dongfang plaza 35 Diagram5.10: Two way pedestrian counts per hour and per minute at Xinbai plaza 35 Diagram5.11: Two way pedestrian counts per hour and per minute at Zhongyang street corner. : 35 Diagram5.12: Two way pedestrian counts per hour and per minute at Jinying street corner ..36 Diagram5.13: Two way pedestrian counts per hour and per minute at Leifulai plaza 36 Diagram5.14: Pedestrian density of each sub-area 37 Diagram5.15: The quantity of seating in each sub-area 41 ix A c k n o w l e d g e m e n t I would like to express my gratitude to professor Cynthia Girling, my thesis supervisor, thank you for being an excellent guide in the development of my thesis. I would also like to thank the members of my advisory committee, professor Ronald Kellett and professor Patrick Condon. Your creativity and enthusiasm were inspiring. A n d a lot of thanks to my husband and parents for your endless support. Chapter One: Introduction 1.1 Background 1.1.1 Social Interaction in Public Spaces Many sociologists and urban planners have stressed the importance of street life in a city, and have advocated the encouragement of social activities on city streets. Jan Gehl is one such advocate. Gehl (1996) proposed that social contact within the context of a city or residential area provides sources of information, inspiration and uniquely stimulating experiences. The process of social contact implies \"an offer of valuable information about the surrounding social environment in general, and about the people one lives or works with, in particular...We discover how others work, behave, and dress, we obtain knowledge about the people we work with, live with, and so forth. B y means of all this information, we establish a confidential relationship with the world around us... In addition to imparting information about the social world outside, the opportunity to see and hear other people can also provide ideas and inspiration for action... Compared with experiencing buildings and other inanimate objects, experiencing people, who speak and move about, offers a wealth of sensual variation (Gehl 1996. Life Between Buildings. PP.23.).\" W u (1999), in his book Planning of the City Center District argued that through social contact, people can exchange information with each other and obtain a sense of psychological satisfaction. It is natural for human beings to want to be involved in social contact and activities within the context of their social environment. It is thus important to protect and encourage social contact between people and to place importance on enriching the social environment. Therefore, there is of value to study the factors that influence people's use of outdoor environments for social activities and discover ways in which to encourage social activities. A s a significant aspect of the social environment, pedestrian environments influence our everyday experience of living in cities (Figure 1.1). Pedestrian environments on commercial streets are as much of social, as they are of commercial importance (Jacobsl961 and Carmenl994). As important public spaces, commercial pedestrian environments in urban centers provide easily accessible sites for social and economic activities such as meeting with friends, enjoying food, window-shopping, participating in commercial shows, or providing children with places to play. These spaces fulfill \"the primary needs that people seek to satisfy in public spaces such as those for comfort, relaxation, active and passive engagement, and discovery (Carrl992. Public Space. P.P. 19)\". Furthermore, they have served as information and communication platforms for people throughout history (Gehl 1996). Figure 1.1: Amagertorv: a pedestrian street in Copenhagen (Source: Gehl,J.1996. Public Space, Public Life. P.P17.) 1.1.2 Background of Situation in China The character of street life in China has changed after the urban reforms of the past several decades (Davis 1995). In the past, China's traditional commercial streets were used by the public as commercial, recreational, work and ceremonial spaces (Wang 2003). Streets were not only the places where people worked and lived, but also served as playgrounds for children. Many people resided on streets, and many resided very close to the streets. These traditional residential patterns brought people together, and ensured that there was life and vibrant activity in the old urban centers. Since the 1980's, most Chinese cities undertook massive renewal projects in their old urban districts. Many residents were relocated out of city centers and into new districts. In 1993 in Shanghai, for example, about 200 redevelopment projects were undergone, and it was estimated that over 1 million people had been relocated from old neighbourhoods and put into new districts (Gaubatz\999). Nanjing has undergone a similar developmental process. Moving residents out of city centers has resulted in decreasing level of daily social contacts made in local neighbourhoods. Since the beginning of market-oriented economic reform, commercial activities have been highly concentrated in Nanjing's central urban districts. Between the years 1984 and 1996, the commercial building area in Xinjiekou, the central business district of Nanjing, has increased from 100,900m2 to 2,740,000m2 ( Wu 1999). Highly concentrated commercial activities attract a high volume of people to the city center for shopping, dining, meeting friends and other forms of recreation. According to 2004 government statistics, the one-day pedestrian volume in Xinjiekou district during weekdays is about 300,000 to 400,000. During special festival times, such as during the Spring Festival, National Day or Labour Day, the one day pedestrian volume rises to as high as one million. 2 In the early stages of the renewal process, of the urban centers of most Chinese cities, very little importance was given to landscape architectural design and the design of public realms. The planning and design o f public open spaces lags behind the massive construction of buildings. Oftentimes, due to a lack of scientific planning and forethought, the physical quality of open spaces fails to meet the needs of pedestrians for recreational activities and social contacts (Wu 1999). In some city centers, street spaces have been proven to be designed with overly large dimensions, and as a result have lost their sense of intimacy and human scale, both of which are vital for social contact (Zhou 2001). The lack of seating spaces and recreation facilities in the pedestrian environments of public open spaces have been cited as common complaints (Shang 2000). Figure 1.2: A pedestrian environment in the urban center of Nanjing, China In recent years, the government has begun to realize the importance of developing public amenities and revitalizing open spaces. A large number of revitalization projects for public open spaces is in progress. Insufficient amounts of information and data have been collected regarding the factors that influence people's use of pedestrian environments for social activities in the urban centers of Chinese cities. Therefore, before beginning to carry out massive revitalization projects, we first need to identify and evaluate the factors that influence pedestrian environments. Doing this research w i l l help us to better understand the influences on the pedestrian environments and wi l l contribute knowledge that could help urban designers, landscape architects, architects and social scientists understand better ways to design and implement policies and plans to encourage more satisfying social life and activities in pedestrian environments. Based on the above rationale, the author chose the main outdoor pedestrian environments in Xinjiekou, the central business district of Nanjing city, as the research area through which to evaluate the important factors that influence pedestrian's use of streets for social activities. Only by clarifying the influencing factors can we come to understand how to encourage and develop a comprehensive social and recreational city life in public realms, and can we make revitalization projects for public open spaces more practical, satisfying and people-oriented. 3 1.2 Objectives of the Study The main objective of the study is to propose recommendations for a feasible revitalization plan in the study area that encourages social activities. More specifically, the objectives are: \u00E2\u0080\u00A2 To identify some important factors that influence people's use of commercial pedestrian environments for social activities; \u00E2\u0080\u00A2 To identify the correlation between the focused factors and pedestrian's social activities; \u00E2\u0080\u00A2 To propose design considerations and recommendations for encouraging social activities in commercial pedestrian environments 1.3 Research Questions The final purpose of this study is to make recommendations about how to solve some concrete problems that exist in the commercial environments in some Chinese cities, particularly in those with similar environments to Xinjiekou, the area that is the focus of this report. These concrete problems are the research questions in the study: \u00E2\u0080\u00A2 What is the main reason for the pedestrian crowding problem at some locations? \u00E2\u0080\u00A2 How can provision be made for movement spaces and rest spaces in a comparably congested pedestrian environment? \u00E2\u0080\u00A2 How can the locations and physical configurations of seating spaces be arranged to provide more seating opportunities and to encourage more group interactions? \u00E2\u0080\u00A2 How can space for socializing be created in a pedestrian environment that has been built with overly large dimensions? \u00E2\u0080\u00A2 Which kind of designs and entertainment are attractive to and preferred by people, and how can the implementation of these be facilitated? 1.4 Scope of Investigation and Focus of this study: 1.4.1 Scope of Investigation The primary focus of this study is to record and analyze the observation data that is related to some important factors that influence pedestrian's social activities, and to find correlations between the observations. Actually, the influencing factors are complex. The interaction between pedestrians and auto-traffic, and a rapid growth in car ownership have resulted in some changes to patterns of social contact (Schumacher 1978 and Gehll996). Furthermore, the different cultural backgrounds (Wul999) have been noted to result in different manners of social contact. Microclimates such as wind, rain and sun can also severely influence how much a space is used (Whyte 1980). These are all aspects which should not be overlooked, however limitations of time and man-power have restricted the scope of study. 4 1.4.2 Focus of the Study The following specific factors summarize the focus of this study, and provide the foundation for the collection of data and its subsequent analysis. The focused factors influencing people's use of commercial pedestrian environments for social activities in the study area include the following: a) Pedestrian density; b) Quantity and quality of seating spaces; c) Attractions and entertainment; d) Dimension of pedestrian environments The four above-mentioned factors all play important in roles in influencing the social activities of pedestrians. Thus, through an analysis of the correlations between the four factors and social activities, we hope to come up with indications about how to solve some concrete problems and gain insight on how to better encourage street life and social activities in the study area. More specific reasons include the following: a) The main reasons for focusing on pedestrian density \u00E2\u0080\u00A2 A sufficient user density has often been regarded as a prerequisite for generating street life and activities (Jacobs 1961, Whytel980 and Carmona 2003). \u00E2\u0080\u00A2 Pedestrian studies are the basic methodology applied in this study; pedestrian density evaluation is an important quantitative aspect of pedestrian studies. \u00E2\u0080\u00A2 The data related to pedestrian density (e.g. highest pedestrian flow rate, pedestrian flow distribution, etc.) can help to inform the planning and design of pedestrian environments whether qualified (Gehl 1996). \u00E2\u0080\u00A2 High pedestrian density poses some problems in many urban centers of Chinese metropolitan cities, therefore, analyzing the correlation between pedestrian density and social activities greatly helps to solve some realistic problems related to pedestrian density. b) The main reasons for focusing on quantity and quality of seating spaces \u00E2\u0080\u00A2 Quantity and quality of seating spaces have been consistently analyzed within the literature relevant to social life and activities in public spaces. \u00E2\u0080\u00A2 Poor seating quality and lack of seating spaces are consistent problems and are in dire need of improvement in pedestrian environments in many Chinese city centers. c) The main reasons for focusing on attractions and entertainment \u00E2\u0080\u00A2 As an important part of public amenities, increasing attention has been paid to attractions and entertainment in pedestrian environments in many current public space revitalization projects. \u00E2\u0080\u00A2 Evaluating their suitability in the study area can help to shed light on some problems that may come up when undertaking revitalization 5 projects. These include looking into which kinds of attractions and entertainment are most preferred by pedestrians, how to, and where to locate these attractions and entertainment, etc. d) The main reasons for focusing on the dimensions of pedestrian environments \u00E2\u0080\u00A2 The dimensions of a space has been consistently analyzed and found to be of importance by many researchers studying street life and activities in public spaces. \u00E2\u0080\u00A2 During recent years, in the developmental process of Chinese urban centers, no dimensional standards for pedestrian environments have been put into effect. The design of the dimensions of pedestrian environments should not be random. On the contrary, they should based on street capacity and the condition of pedestrian's social activities. Thus, evaluating the existing dimensions of pedestrian environments in the study area helps us to understand and discuss which kinds of dimensions are the most suitable for Chinese metropolitan cities. Chapter Two: Literature Review Before beginning an investigation of the study area, a review of the scholarly literature on the influences of people's use of public open spaces was undertaken. 2.1 Introduction of Some Representative Research Studies Gehl and Whyte are two famous researchers who have analyzed street life and usage patterns through direct observation of how people use outdoor spaces. Their studies are deemed as classics within the literature in the field of public space projects. 2.1.1 William H.Whyte William H.Whyte started his street life project in New York in 1971 and recorded his observation of the behavior of ordinary people in his famous book The Social Life of Small Urban Space(l9S0), Whyte's work was reissued as a more substantial book, City: rediscovering the Centre(\9&&). His project for public space has pioneered the use of video cameras to analyze patterns of space usage over time. The work of Whyte is of particular interest with regard to how people use public spaces, Whyte noted that many such spaces appeared little used, some did not and analyzed the possible reasons why some city spaces work for people, and some do not. Whyte noted that the most sociable spaces usually possessed the following features: \u00E2\u0080\u00A2 A good location, preferably on a busy route and both physically and visually accessible; \u00E2\u0080\u00A2 Being level or almost level with the pavement (Whyte noted that spaces significantly above or below this were less used); \u00E2\u0080\u00A2 Places to sit- both explicit (e.g. benches, chairs, etc.); and integral (e.g. steps, low walls, etc.); \u00E2\u0080\u00A2 Moveable seats, enabling choice, and the communication of character and personality; 6 \u00E2\u0080\u00A2 Have some external stimulus that provides a linkage between people ( e.g. street band, street entertainers, sculptures, food facilities, etc.) Less important factors include sun penetration, the aesthetics of the space. 2.1.2 Jan Gehl Reflecting on his influential book life between buildings: using public space(1996), Gehl offered a broad vision about the relationships between people and outdoor spaces. His study points out how the physical conditions of outdoor spaces can promote or impede the interactions between people and makes recommendations for how design techniques can encourage active use of outdoor space. Gehl(1996) in his book 'Public Space - Public Life' described how the city center and urban life of Copenhagen have developed and changed over the period of 1962-1996, following the many quality improvements. Jan Gehl presents a method for evaluating city quality: both qualitative and quantitative analysis of pedestrian life. Qualitative analysis refers to observing the patterns of pedestrian activities (e.g. commercial activities, standing, sitting on chairs of outdoor cafes, sitting on benches, etc.). Quantitative analysis refers to records of pedestrian volume (e.g. pedestrians per hour from morning to evening, pedestrians per minute etc.) and recording the number of pedestrian activities that occur (e.g. the number of stationary activities). Gehl (1996) divided outdoor life on public spaces into three categories: 1) Necessary activities Necessary activities are those that are routine and more or less compulsory such as going to work or to school, shopping, waiting for buses or other people, distributing mail, etc. In other words, it means all activities in which those involved are to a greater or less degree required to participate. Everyday tasks and pastimes belong to this group. In short, necessary activities occur under nearly all conditions, and are more or less independent of the exterior environment. 2) Optional activities Optional activities include such as taking a walk to get a breath of fresh air, standing around enjoying life, or sitting and sunbathing. Optional activities are those pursuits that are engaged in i f there is a wish to do so and if time and place make it possible. These activities take place only when exterior conditions are favorable and comfortable, when weather and place invite them. This relationship is particularly important in connection to physical planning because most of the recreation activities outdoors are found precisely in this category of activities. These activities are especially dependent on exterior physical conditions. This means that when outdoor areas are of poor quality only strictly necessary activities occur. When outdoor areas are of high quality, when place and situation invite people to stop, sit, eat, play, and so on, a wide range of optional activities occur. 3) Social activities Social Activities includes greetings, meetings, conversations, children playing 7 and communal activities of various kinds. Social activities are all activities that depend on the presence of others in public spaces. These activities could be termed 'resultant' activities because they involve from activities linked to the other two activities categories. Social activities take place spontaneously, as a direct consequence of people moving around and being in the same spaces. This implies that social activities are indirectly supported whenever necessary and optional activities are given better conditions. If the quality of outdoor environment is good, optional activities occur with increasing frequency. As levels of optional activity rise, the number of social activities increases, 'social activities' in the broadest possible sense are mainly the most common recreational and leisure pursuits one can carry out in urban centers, alone or in company. Gehl stressed that there is a relationship between outdoor quality and outdoor activity, stating that outdoor quality of streets and squares can influence how many people will use them, how long the individual activities last and which activity types may develop. Gehl noted some important physical conditions of public spaces that can increase or reduce social contacts: Increase social contacts: \u00E2\u0080\u00A2 no walls \u00E2\u0080\u00A2 short distances between a place to a place \u00E2\u0080\u00A2 narrow streets \u00E2\u0080\u00A2 one level \u00E2\u0080\u00A2 face to face orientation ( seating spaces) \u00E2\u0080\u00A2 active building frontage( frequent doors and windows facing the streets, detailed facades) Reduce social contacts: \u00E2\u0080\u00A2 walls \u00E2\u0080\u00A2 long distances between a place to a place \u00E2\u0080\u00A2 wide streets \u00E2\u0080\u00A2 multiple level \u00E2\u0080\u00A2 back to back orientation( seating spaces) \u00E2\u0080\u00A2 negative building frontage (big buildings with long facades, blank walls, few windows and entrances) 2.2 The Four Influencing Factors and Relevant Literature Research 2.2.1 Pedestrian Density Many researchers agree that some extent of pedestrian density is a precondition for street activities. Pedestrian density is defined as the mean number of people in a place at any given moment (Alexander1977). Schumacher (1978) proposed that street activity occurs only if it is convenient for large numbers of pedestrians to use the street in various ways. Whyte (1980) mentioned that \"Big cities have lots of people in their downtowns. This density poses 8 problems, but it provides a strong supply of potential users for open spaces in most parts of the central business district (Whyte 1980. The Social life of Small Urban Spaces.P.P.90).\" In his studies of Copenhagen, Jan Gehl found a strong correlation between the number of people sitting on benches along the city's main pedestrian way, and the number of people standing or walking. However, if pedestrian density is too high, it may discourage pedestrians' social activities (Gehl, 1996). Walking demands space, and according to Gehl, the upper limit for an acceptable density in streets with two-way pedestrian traffic appears to be around 10-15 pedestrians per minute per meter of street width. If the density is increased further, freedom of movement is more or less lost, thus people no longer meet, but rather begin to walk behind one another in ranks. 2.2.2 Quantity and Quality of Seating Spaces Whyte (1980) and Gehl (1996) both reached similar conclusions in that the most popular plazas tend to have considerably more sitting space than the less popular ones. Seating spaces prolong pedestrian's stays of duration in outdoor environments, create niches for many social activities like sun-bathing, chatting, playing chess, meeting friends or watching passersby. If these opportunities for sitting are few or bad, people just walk on by. This means not only that stays in public are brief, but also that many attractive and worthwhile outdoor activities are precluded ( Gehll996. Life between Buildings .P.P157).\") Quantity requirements: In her book, People Places: Design Guidelines for Urban Open Spaces, Marcus Clare Cooper recommended one linear foot of seating for each thirty square feet of urban open space. Whyte (1980) mentioned that the ideal quantity of seating space is between 6 to 10 percent of total open space (1.8 to 3 square ft. of seating for 30 square ft. of urban open space). These latest figures are used in North American urban requirements, and might be low in consideration of the conditions of Chinese cities. Quality requirements: Through his observations, Whyte (1980) mentioned that a critical factor that influenced people's choice of seating places was the sun. People usually prefer sunny seating areas. He further found that people were attracted to seating environments which provide a sense of enclosure. He also proposed the importance of providing both physically comfortable and socially comfortable seating places. Physically comfortable sitting spaces include sitting-benches with backrests, and well contoured chairs. Socially comfortable sitting is more important, and implies that potential sitters have the ability to make choices for themselves: sitting up front, in back, to the side, in the sun, in the shade, in groups, or off alone. Gehl (1996) mentioned that seating places that provide a good view of surrounding activities are used more than those from which views are limited. Marcus (1998), Gehl (1996) and Whyte (1980) all discovered that chairs or ledges along buildings, steps, and walls alongside busy streets are some of the most popular 9 public seating places because these seating places provide both back protection and a good view of surrounding activities. Whyte (1980), Carr (1992) and Marcus (1998) stressed the important role that movable seating plays in facilitating spatial claims. Movable seating provides people with the opportunity to claim and arrange space to fit their various behavioral needs, such as engaging in group conversations or finding a secluded spot for themselves. We can generally conclude that good quality sitting spaces have the following attributes: a) good view of surrounding activities; b) back protection (benches with backrests; along building walls; under trees or under cornices); c) provides different sitting choices for people (in back or to the side; in the sun or in the shade; private or exposed; in groups or alone) 2.2.3 Attractions and Entertainment Optional and social activities w i l l increase i f the pedestrian environment contains high levels of interest and aesthetics in terms of people, activities and events (Gehl 1996). Individuals and events can influence and stimulate one another. Attractions and entertainment in a pedestrian environment are features that can improve the delight taken in the act of walking and can include such things as people, outdoor exhibits, colorful storefronts, food facilities, sculptures, fresh flags and banners, water features, attractive landscaping, chance meetings, sidewalk cafes and anything else that results in the discovery of something new or vital in one's surroundings (Carr1992, Robertson 1994 and Gehl 1996). Whyte (1980) argues that streets should provide some external stimulus which can provide a linkage between people and prompt strangers to talk to each other. The stimulus can be a physical object or sight. Street performances, entertainers, street bands can have strong social effects. Water features were emphasized by many researchers (Whyte 1980 and Carr 1992) as both attractions and entertainment in public spaces. Buker and Montarzino (1983) found that water was the single most desired feature, mentioned by 98 percent of their interviewees. 2.3.4 Dimension of the Pedestrian Environments \"Dimension\" in English dictionaries mainly refers to \"the magnitude of something in a particular direction (especially length or width or height)\". Dimension of pedestrian environments here refers to the width of street space for pedestrians. Jacobs (1961), Whyte (1980), Gehl (1996), and a Chinese researcher, W u (1999), all discussed that the dimension of street spaces in old cities correlates well with the human sensory apparatus and the number of people who use the spaces. Nowadays, street life is drastically reduced when small units are superseded by large units which are felt to be cold and impersonal, creating holes and voids in the city fabric. Gehl believes that over-dimensioned streets disperse activities because there is a long 10 distance between people from one side of the street to the other in such spaces. Moreover, the possibility of passers-by experiencing simultaneously what is going on at both sides of the street is more or less lost. Gehl noted that in the range of 20-25 meters, most people can perceive the feelings and moods o f others relatively clearly, and thus some pedestrian streets with a width more than twenty meters, or squares with a width more than forty meters, are oversized and not conducive to social interaction. Gehl advocated that \"the system of public space should be as compact as possible and so that the distances for pedestrian traffic and sensory experiences are as short as possible (Gehl 1996. Life between Buildings. P.P.93.).\" Pedestrian environments should be dimensioned in proportion to the number of prospective users, so that pedestrians move in an intimate, clearly defined space and do not \"drift about\" in a large, half empty areas. In appropriately dimentioned areas, the meetings become truly interesting and relevant in the social context. Traditional Chinese commercial streets normally have a width of 6-8 meters. These narrow streets, with small spaces are perceived as intimate, warm and personal. (Figure2.1). Figure2.1: A traditional commercial street, at Fenghuang city, China (Source:http://upload.mop.com/user/2005/04/2lZa69aflb5.jpg) However, Chinese contemporary commercial centers have been designed differently, as the small-scale space of traditional commercial streets was no longer seen to accommodate pedestrian traffic due to increased levels of urban population and vehicular use (Wul999). Contemporary Chinese downtown districts require unique dimensional standards due to pedestrian density distributions. W u (1999) recommended a suitable width of 10-20 meters for the pedestrian streets in urban centers of Chinese metropolitan cities. 11 Table2.1: The list of the four focused factors and their corresponding researchers Influencing Factors Corresponding Researchers Pedestrian density Schumacher(1978); Whyte(1980); Gehl(1996) Quantity and quality of seating spaces Whyte(1980); Gehl(1996); Marcus( 1998)D Carr(1992) Attractiveness and entertainment Whyte(1980); Robertson(1994); Gehl(1996); Carr(1992) Dimensions of pedestrian environments Jacob( 1969);Whyte( 1980); Gehl( 1996) CHAPTER THREE: Study Area Background 3.1 Background Introduction The study area is in Nanjing, a city with a two thousand years history, and the present capital city of Jiangsu province in China. Nanjing is located in the lower reaches of Yangtze river. The total population of Nanjing is 6,238,000, with the population of its urban area at about 4,435,000 (2000 National Population Census). Nanjing has four distinct seasons. Winter (December to February) is cold, with an average temperature in January of about 1.9c, lower temperatures in the winter go down to about -7c. Summer (June to September), is extremely hot, with the average temperature in July reaching about 28.2c.The highest temperatures in summer reach to about 37c. Figure3.1: Nanjing's location in China (Source of the base map: h ttp ://www. 9654. com/ml ch ina.h tm The study area in question is called Xinjiekou, and is the central business district of Nanjing. The core area of Xinjiekou is about 1.2 sq.km. The average population density is 42,000/sq.km. Xinjiekou has been Nanjing's political, financial and commercial center since the Chinese Kuomintang government was founded in Nanjing in 1927. It develops along the intersection of the four main roads of the city, East-Zhongshan road, Zhongshan road, South-Zhongshang road and Hanzhong road. The oldest department store in Xinjiekou, Zhongyang department store, was founded in 1937. 12 A\u00C2\u00AE Legend Stone City Site (Chu 331 B.C M M Palace Site of The ^ m Six-Dynasty( A.D.317) Palace Site of The South-Tang (A.D.914) Palace Site of The ^ m Ming Dynasty (A.D.1386) on- City Wall (A.D.1386) \u00E2\u0080\u00A2Xinjiekou-CBD of Nanjing developed from 1927 Figure3.2: The location of Xinjiekou and some other historical remains in the city 13 Figure3.3:Xinjiekou in earlyl930s (Source: Republic of China Meridian. Jiangsu Fine Arts Press. 2003.) After the implementation of economic reform and open-door policy in 1980's, there has been a sharp increase of land use for retail, commerce, business, finance, catering and recreation in Xinjiekou. Xinjiekou has become the central business district of Nanjing. In 1984, the total commercial area in Xinjiekou was only 100,900 square meters. By 1996, the commercial area included an area of up to 2,740,000 square meters. From 1984 to the present, the number of large-scale department stores increased from 2 to 14. According to 2004 government statistics, during weekdays, the one-day pedestrian volume in Xinjiekou district is between 300,000 and 400,000. During special festival times such as during Spring Festival, National Day and Labour Day, the one day pedestrian volume rises to 1,000,000. Quite a number of pedestrians who come to Xinjiekou for shopping come from the nearby towns and cities such as Pukou, Liuhe, Lishui, Ma'anshan, Chuzhou, etc. Almost 30% of the total retail sales volume per year in Xinjiekou were achieved by people from nearby towns. Xinjiekou commercial district ranks third from among the top ten Chinese famous commercial streets because of its extremely high yearly retail sales volumes. Figure3.4: Overlook Xinjiekou district Source: http://www.njtv. com. cn/njguide/ pic_intro.htm Open spaces in the study area include all the pedestrian environments on commercial streets. There are two main reasons for the lack of open spaces in 14 the study area. F o r one th ing, the p lann ing o f parks and p lazas has been restr icted by the extremely compacted urban center o f N a n j i n g , w h i c h was deve loped f rom the o ld urban distr ict. Ano the r reason for the lack o f open spaces is that no sc ient i f ic p lann ing for pub l i c spaces was done i n the past two decades dur ing the ear ly stages o f urban renewal . Pedest r ian 's general compla ints about the study area invo lve three m a i n aspects: pedestr ians have d i f f i cu l ty i n f ind ing vacant seating places dur ing peak hours and have to bear their fatigue and go on w a l k i n g ; lack o f recreat ion faci l i t ies somet imes makes people feel bored and does not prov ide them w i th anyth ing to do in their pedestr ian envi ronments; pedestr ian act iv i t ies are constrained i n some pedestr ian spaces due to congest ion dur ing peak hours. A c c o r d i n g to an interv iews that were conducted w i th residents o f N a n j i n g ( W u 1999), 6 4 . 6 % o f respondents thought that the most important aspect was the urgent need to increase rest areas for pedestrians in X i n j i e k o u . 3.2 Introduction of the Sub-areas within the Study Area The study area inc ludes Zhenghong pedestr ian street and f ive street corner p lazas: X i n b a i , Z h o n g y a n g , Dong fang , L e i f u l a i and J iny ing . Zhenghong pedestr ian street, total ly c losed to auto-traff ic, was bui l t in 1993. It has four entrances, situated respect ive ly in the north, south, west, and east direct ions. Zhenghong pedestr ian street carries m u c h o f the pedestr ian vo lume o f X i n j i e k o u due to h igh density and a var iety o f commerc ia l services around it and its pedestr ian-or iented shopping environment. The f ive street corner p lazas, X i n b a i , Zhongyang , Dong fang , J i ny i n and L e i f u l a i are also important pedestr ian envi ronments in the C B D o f N a n j i n g . T h e y have s imi la r adjacent land use types, and the first several f loors o f their adjacent bu i ld ings are a l l department stores. B u s y street corners were ment ioned by many researchers (Whyte 1980) as spaces hav ing a b r i sk soc ia l l i fe o f their o w n ; they funct ion not on ly as the pedestr ian routeways, but also as the spaces for street l i fe and act iv i t ies. The f ive street corner p lazas have dif ferent d imensions and design conf igurat ions, therefore, we can explore their var ious in f luences on l i fe and act iv i t ies through observ ing pedestr ians' use o f those street corners. In short, Zhenghong pedestr ian street and the other nearby f ive street corners were selected for study because they carry the ma in pedestr ian f l ows i n the C B D o f N a n j i n g , and they are the on ly outdoor pub l i c open spaces in the compact c i ty center. 15 Figure3 .5 : Open space distribution map (Source of base map: Nanjing Planning Bureau. Nanjing city 1:5000 Aerial Photo. 2003.) 16 Figure 3 .6 : Land use map Red color: commercial land use. Yellow color: residential land use (Source of the base map: Nanjing Planning Bureau. Nanjing city 1:5000 Aerial Photo. 2003.) From the map, we can see that the study area is totally surrounded by commercial land use. In the past of two decades, many residents were relocated out of the city center to new urban districts due to the commercial developments. 17 Figure 3.7: Public transit map icons show the location of bus stops in the study area (Source of base map: Nanjing Planning Bureau. Nanjing city 1:5000 Aerial Photo. 2003.) Many of people travel to the C B D of Nanjing by subway, bus or bicycle. There are now more and more people going there by car due to the sharp growth in car ownership of recent years. 3.3 General Introduction of Pedestrian Activities in Study A r e a Outdoor pedestrian activities in commercial environments can be classified into two broad categories: consumption activity and non-consumption activity (Wu 1999). Consumption activity refers to purchasing activity, such as retail activity. Pedestrians' non-consumption activity can be generalized as the combination of various activities such as walking, standing, talking, sitting, playing, with these activities sometimes done in combination. The following is a general introduction to the non-consumption activities in which pedestrians are involved within the study area: 1) Walking Walking can be broadly divided into two types: walking intentionally and walking randomly. Walking intentionally includes walking for the purposes of going to or from work, going to stores with the intent of buying something, going to restaurants or cinemas, etc. Walking randomly is a kind of slow and incoherent walking activity, where pedestrians usually walk for a while, then stop to watch something, then walk on. Walking randomly has no clear intention, it is like \"strolling\". Figure3.8: Pedestrian walking on Zhenghong pedestrian street 2) Standing Standing activity occurs in many situations such as when waiting for someone, happening to meet some acquaintances and exchanging of conventional greetings, or standing still to read something such as a demonstration board, to watch a movie screen, or to watch outdoor commercial shows and sales promotion usually presented around entrances of departments stores, etc. Figure3.9: People standing around the Figure3.10: People standing around commercial show at the center of the commercial show at the entrance of Zhenghong pedestrian street Zhongyang department store 19 Figure3.11: People standing at the entrance of a restaurant on Zhenghong pedestrian street 3) Sitting In commercial environments, most pedestrians eventually need to sit for a rest. Sitting is a common and frequent pedestrian activity type. People like to sit to read newspapers, or have a drink, talk with friends, to play card games, or just sit to watch passersby, etc. Figure 3.12: People sitting on a shrub planter at Zhenghong pedestrian street 4) Playing Playing includes children playing in the fountain, playing on skateboards, or older people playing card games, etc. Figure3.13: Children playing in the fountain at Zhongyang street corner In the study, I define \"social activities\" in the broadest possible sense. This includes most of the common recreational and leisure pursuits one can carry out in urban centers, alone or in company. 20 C H A R P T E R F O U R : Methodology 4.1 General Introduction of the Study Process The final goal of the study is to propose feasible recommendations for solving some concrete problems related to the four focused factors in order to encourage pedestrians' social activities. To achieve this goal, the method used is to evaluate the four factors examined in the study area in order to discover how they interact with pedestrians' social activities. Pedestrian studies were applied as the basic methodology in the evaluation process. Diagram 4.1: General flow chart of this study Four Factors Pedestrian density Seating spaces Attraction and entertainment Dimension of pedestrian environments Correlational Analysis Social activities in study area Evaluation Process in study area (pedestrian studies) Correlations Goal propose feasible recommendations for encouraging social activities 4.2 Review of Pedestrian Studies Pedestrian studies were applied in the evaluation process in this study in order to explore the interactions between the four factors and pedestrians' social activities. Pedestrian studies, as they were applied in this study include both quantitative and qualitative aspects. Quantitative aspects focus on pedestrian density and capacity. Qualitative aspects focus on pedestrian behavior patterns. Pedestrian studies is often the best research method through which to understand the activities of pedestrians. To begin, a brief review of the work done by authors who have applied pedestrian studies in their research was undertaken. The method, as a tool for recording some aspects of human behavior patterns has been used by many researchers. Lynch(1959) 21 recorded responses from pedestrians, in the city of Boston for the search for order in the environment. Whyte (1980) observed the social life o f small urban spaces to study the possible reasons why some city spaces work for people, and some do not. Hass-Klau, Dowland and No ld (1994) studied street life in ten town centers in Britain, Germany and Italy, to explore the principles of creating livable urban spaces. Gehl (1996) applied pedestrian studies as a method of evaluation of the quality of city life in order to show the significant changes in pedestrian usage after the pedestrianization of Copenhagen's city center. Table 4.1: Pedestrian studies used in this research and researchers of relevance Category Detailed Pedestrian Studies in the study Researchers and Publications Quantitative Aspects 1) Pedestrian volumes at different time of a day (hourly pedestrian volume from morning to night on a day) Gehl,J. Public spaces, Public life. 1996. 2) Pedestrian flow rate (highest two-way pedestrians per minute per meter of street width) Gehl,J. Life between buildings. 1996 3) The number of stationary activities (the total number of people sitting, standing, playing at a specific time in each sub-area) Gehl,J. Public spaces, Public life. 1996. 4) The proportion of pedestrians involved in stationary activities including sitting, standing, children playing, etc. (calculate the total number of people involved in stationary activities as compared to the total number of people at a specific time in each sub-area) Gehl,J. Public spaces, Public life. 1996. Hass-Klau, C , Dowland, C , and Nold,I. Streets as living space: A Town Centre Study of European Pedestrian Behavior. 1994. Qualitative Aspects 1) Behavior mapping of pedestrian's stationary activities (different icons were drawed on the plan of each subarea to represent different activity types) Hass-Klau, C , Dowland, C , and Nold,I. Streets as living space: A Town Centre Study of European Pedestrian Behavior. 1994. 2) Mapping of pedestrian's walking flows (Use dotted lines to reflect pedestrian flow distributions in Hass-Klau, C , Dowland, C and Nold,I. Streets as living space: A Town Centre Study of European Pedestrian Behavior. 1994. 22 each sub-area) 3) Direct observation of pedestrian's Gehl, J. Life Between Buildings. activities (walking, standing, sitting, 1996. etc.) Whyte, W. The social life of small urban spaces. 1980. Marcus, Clare.C. People places: design guidelines for urban open spaces.1998. 4.3 Detailed Methods Applied in the Evaluation Process 4.3.1 Other Influencing Factors Other factors such as microclimate, demographics, quality of spaces, and programming effects actually influence pedestrians' use of street to a certain extent. However, I deem that they are not the vital factors through the analysis of the conditions of the study area. To explore the four focused factors (pedestrian density, quantity and quality of seating spaces, attractions and entertainment, and dimensions of pedestrian environments) in a more rational way, I choose A p r i l as the observation month. Apr i l in Nanjing is a comparably comfortable season during a year, there is no hot sun or cold wind, pedestrian's choice of seating and walking is not mainly influenced by the weather protection purpose. The aesthetic quality of a pedestrian environment also influences people's choice of seating or public facilities, however, this kind of influence is minor in the study area. In the whole study area, the design style of every pedestrian environment is very similar, furthermore, the high pedestrian density and the lack of seating and public facilities make people no more opportunities to select especially during on-peak hours. Commercial shows or sale promotions in the study area usually attracted a huge number of people to watch, the pedestrian density is extremely high at the space around such events, so I choose a normal day without special events to do the observation, thus the data collected in each sub-area w i l l accurately reflect the true condition i f there are no programming effects. 4.3.2 Introduction The observation data and its subsequent analysis w i l l be organized as a research report in Chapter Five. The whole study area was divided into ten sub-areas for the purpose of recording the observation data: north part (N), south part (S), west part (W), east part (E) and central part (C) of Zhenghong pedestrian street; Zhongyang (Z), Xinbai (X) , Dongfang (D), Jinying (J) and Leifulai (L) street corner plazas. In order to make the comparisons between each sub-area more coherent, some data, such as pedestrian volume, was collected on the same day; the number of stationary activities and the proportion of pedestrians involved in social activities in each 2 3 sub-area were collected at the same time on one day. In order to achieve this, the author trained nine other students to help record the observational data. Tables, diagrams and mapping were applied in order to clearly record some observation data. A l l the original hand-written drafts were changed into computer generated tables, diagrams and mappings. Two kinds of pedestrian mapping were applied in the study: mapping of pedestrian behavior and mapping of pedestrian flows. Mapping of pedestrian behavior and pedestrian flows can clearly show the relationship between activity and the surrounding environment. Pedestrian behavior mappings (Appendix 1-10): The position of street furniture, landscape elements and adjacent ground-floor land use types were shown on all sub-area plans, with different icons drawn to represent different types of activity. From pedestrian behavior mappings, we can discover: 1) pedestrians' preferences for the locations of some social activities; 2) types of attractions or entrainment that can attract pedestrians to linger Pedestrian flow mappings (Appendix a-j): Use dotted lines to reflect pedestrian flows in each sub-area. From pedestrian flow mappings, we can discover: 1) pedestrians' general walking patterns; 2) position of major and minor pedestrian flows in each sub-area (pedestrian density distribution on a site scale) 4.3.3 Detailed Process of Recording Data \u00E2\u0080\u00A2 Record pedestrian counts per minute and hourly pedestrian volume: Date: Wednesday 6 Apr i l 2005, Weather: clear, mild Time: from 9:00 am to 11:00 pm, One observer stood at one measuring station, four measuring stations are at the entrance of the north part, south part, west part and east part of Zhenghong pedestrian street, the other five are at the five street corners. - Pedestrian counts per minute: Each observer used a stopwatch, counted the two-way pedestrians in one minute starting respectively from 9:00 am, 10:00am, 11:00 am ....to 11:00pm. The total number of observation times in each sub-area is 15. They wrote down the data. I put these data collected respectively from each sub-area into computer line charts. These line charts reflect the variation of pedestrians per minute during a day. The highest two-way pedestrians wi l l be used to calculate the highest flow rate later. - Hourly pedestrian volume: The calculation of hourly pedestrian volume is based on the estimation of average two-way pedestrians per minute in an hour. For example, 10 people were counted in one minute starting from 9:00 am, 18 people were counted in one minute starting from 10 :00 am, I presumed that the average number of pedestrians per minute during 9:00 am to 10:00 am is the mean value of 10 and 18, which equals 14{(10+18)/2=14}, so the hourly pedestrian volume during 9:00 am to 10:00 am at 24 this measuring station is about 840(14 pedestrians per minute x 60 minutes). The data of hourly pedestrian volume may not be very accurate, but they won't influence any other data and results because the purpose for estimating hourly pedestrian volumes is just to draw a column chart to reflect the variation of pedestrian volumes during a day. \u00E2\u0080\u00A2 Record the variation of social activities during a day Date: Apr i l 11 2005 Time: from 7:00 am to 23:00 pm The number of social activities is measured by the number of stationary activities including sitting and standing. Use one sub-area( north part of Zhenghong pedestrian street) as a sample to record the number of people sitting and standing at 17 observation times during a day. Every observation time started at 7:00 am, 8:00 am, 9:00am ...23:00 pm, total number of observation times is 17. For example, there were total 10 people sitting and 15 people standing at 9:00 am, so 10 people sitting and 15 people standing were wrote down. Then I put these data into a computer line chart to reflect the variation of social activities during a day. \u00E2\u0080\u00A2 Record the number of stationary activities in each sub-area at the same observation time, draw the pedestrian behavior mapping and pedestrian flow mapping of each sub-area Date: Saturday Apr i l 30, 2005 Weather: mild Time: begin at 5:30 pm Each observer stood respectively at each sub-area, counted the number of stationary activities including people sitting, standing and children playing at 5:30 pm on Apr i l 30, and wrote down these numbers. Then they immediately counted the total number pedestrians (the total number of people who were sitting, standing and walking) in each sub-area. I used two data (total number of stationary activities and total number people) to calculate the proportion of people involved in social activities. For example, 10 people sitting, 18 people standing, and 2 children playing were recorded as the number, of stationary activities at 5:30 pm in one sub-area, and 80 people were counted as the total number of people at the same time in that sub-area, thus, the proportion of people involved in social activities is 37.5% {(10+18+2)/80}. -Draw pedestrian behavior mappings of each sub-area I first drew a detailed plan draft for each sub-area including building contour lines, seating spaces, public facilities and landscape elements, and I also labeled adjacent commercial service types. Every observer had such a draft in hand at their measuring stations. I let them draw some sample icons on the plan to represent activity types including single people standing, group people standing, 2 5 people sitting and children playing. When they observed those activities, they drew the corresponding icons on the plan draft. These pedestrian behavior mappings clearly showed the locations of activities. - Draw pedestrian flow mappings of each sub-area Observation of pedestrian's walking flows started immediately after finishing the record of pedestrians' stationary activities mentioned above. The time around 5:30 is a good time for observing pedestrians' walking patterns because during peak hours, there were many passer-by pedestrians, which easily formed pedestrians' walking flows, and thus those walking patterns were easily observed. Each observer had another copy of the above mentioned plan draft of the corresponding sub-area in hand. They drew dotted lines on the draft, to show the major and minor pedestrian flows they observed. This observation process lasted for several to ten minutes, after finishing drawing, every observer spent a few more minutes to re-examine the walking patterns they already drew through observing pedestrian flows once again. 4.3.4 Rationale of the Evaluation Process The four measurements w i l l be evaluated in the study area to find their correlations with pedestrians' social activities. Pedestrians' social activities in the study area wi l l first be evaluated. (S)Social activity: Social activity in the study area is evaluated through the following: 51) The intensity of social activities during a day Use of one sub-area as an example to record the number of social activities (sitting and standing), from morning to night on one specific day (Diagram 5.1); Purpose: to reflect the variation in the intensity of social activities at different times during a day 52) The intensity of social activities in each sub-area The intensity of social activities in each sub-area is evaluated in the following three ways; S2-1) Number of stationary activities (sitting, standing, children playing) within each sub-area at a certain time of day (Diagram5.2) S2-2) Proportion of people involved in social activities within each sub-area at a certain time of day (Diagram 5.3) Not all the people in any one place are involved in social activities; some are involved in necessary activities, and some are involved in social activities. To calculate the proportion of people involved in social activities, one needs to calculate the total number of people involved in stationary activities (eg: sitting, standing, playing, etc) as compared to the total number of people at a specific time in each sub-area. 26 S2-3) Social activities types Purpose of S2-1), S2-2) and S2-3): to compare the intensity of social activity between each sub-area The following are the detailed evaluation methods for the four influencing factors: A : Pedestrian Density: Pedestrian density is evaluated in the following three ways: A l ) Hourly pedestrian volume from morning to night on a specific day in each sub-area (Diagram5.5-Diagram5.13); Purpose: to reflect the variations of pedestrian density at different times of a specific day Correlational analysis between A l ) and SI): Purpose: to discover i f there is a correlation between pedestrian density and the intensity of social activities on a specific day A2) Pedestrian flow rate (two-way pedestrians per minute per meter width) of each sub-area (Table 5.1 and Diagram 5.14); Purpose: to reflect the general pedestrian density distribution in the study area and compare the pedestrian densities between each sub-area Correlational analysis between A2) and S2-1): Purpose: to discover i f there is correlation between pedestrian density and the number of social activities Correlational analysis between a2) and S2-2): Purpose: to discover i f there is correlation between pedestrian density and the proportion of pedestrians involved in social activities A3) Pedestrian flow distribution of each sub-area (Appendix a-j) Purpose: to discover major and minor pedestrian flows at the site scale (pedestrian density distribution at the site scale); to discover some areas of pedestrian congestion; to discover the relationship between social activities and the distribution of pedestrian flows (based on the analysis between Pedestrian Behavior Mappings for each sub-area and Pedestrian Flow Mappings for each sub-area) B : Quantity and Quality of Seating Spaces Quantity of seating spaces is evaluated in the following two ways: B l ) On-peak observation ( observation of the conditions of use of seating spaces during peak hours); Purpose: to discover i f the quantity of seating spaces is favorable for pedestrian use B2) Calculation of seating quantity(Table5.2) Purpose: to compare the existing seating quantities within each sub-area with conventional requirements [Marcus (1998) proposed that optimal seating would equal one linear foot of seating for each thirty square feet of urban open space.]. Quality of seating spaces is evaluated in the following two ways: 2 7 B i ) General evaluation according to the conventional requirements for quality seating clarified in Chapter Two B i i ) Off-peak observation (observation of the conditions of the use of seating spaces during off-peak hours) Whyte considered that off-peak use provided the best clues regarding people's seating preferences. During off-peak hours, when people have more choice with regard to seating spaces, they normally begin by taking what they consider to be good quality seating spaces. Therefore, we can gain insight about what are considered to be good or bad quality seating spaces through observing people's preferences during off-peak hours. C: Attractions and entertainment Attractions and entertainment in the study area is evaluated by on-site observation of the existing attractiveness and entertainment in the study areafTable 5.3). Purpose: to discover pedestrians' preference for attractions and entertainment within the study area D : Dimension of the pedestrian environment The dimension of the pedestrian environment is evaluated in the following two ways: D I ) Street capacity of each sub-area Calculate highest two-way pedestrians per minute per meter of street width (Table5.4) Purpose: to compare the street capacity of each sub-area with the upper limits for pedestrian flow rates [Gehl (1996) proposed that 10-15 people per minute per meter of street width is the upper limit] to discover whether or not the existing street spaces can accommodate the highest pedestrian flows. D2) The intensity of social activities at the five street corner plazas Each of the five street corners in the study area have distinct dimensions (large dimension: over 40m, medium dimension: 20-25m, small dimension: under 15m). The condition of pedestrians' use of street space was observed respectively at all five street corners (Table 5.5). Purpose: to discover the correlation between the dimensions of street space and the intensity of social activities 4.3.5 Summary According to the evaluation process of the four factors in the study area and their correlational analysis with pedestrians' social activities, we can discover the interrelationship between each factor and pedestrians' social activities. The results of these interrelationships are summarized in Chapter five. Findings and recommendations wi l l be proposed in Chapter Six. 28 CHAPTER FIVE: Research Report Chapter Five summarizes the evaluation process of the four factors under assessment in the study area, and examines their correlation with pedestrians' social activities. There are ten measuring stations within the study area. Zhenghong pedestrian street is divided into five parts which are recorded in the observation: north part (N), south part (S), west part (W), east part (E) and central part (C). The other five street corner plazas are as follows: Xinbai (X) , Zhongyang (Z), Dongfang (D), Jinying (J) and Leifulai (L). Figure5.1: Overview photo of each sub-area 2') 5.1 Social Activity 5.1.1 The Intensity of Social Activities at Different Times of a Day In the early morning, few people were on the streets and most seating spaces were vacant. A s noon approached, more and more people began to walk on streets, sit on benches, or stand singly or in group at the entrances of stores. In the afternoon, between 3:00 pm and 5:00 pm, the number of people decreased and the intensity levels of social activities being carried out were modest. A t nightfall, between 6:00 pm and 8:00 pm, another peak time occurred when the intensity of social activities reached their peak levels for the day. In the evening, the number of pedestrians decreased rapidly. A record of the number of people sitting and standing at the north part of Zhenghong pedestrian street from 7:00 am to 12:00 pm on Monday, Apr i l 11, 2005 (Diagram 5.1) shows the variation of intensity of social activities during a day. 100 -c a> Q. nd 80 \" o TO a> Q. V) 60 \" T3 O C ra 40 \" L_ 0) o> rrb c Nu 4\u00E2\u0080\u0094. 20 \" '55 0 L 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 Ti rre Diagram5.1: The number of people sitting and standing from 7:00 am-12:00pm (Monday, A pr i l 11, 2005), at the north part of Zhenghong pedestrian street 5.1.2 The Intensity of Social Activities in Each Sub-area The intensity of social activities is evaluated in three ways: \u00E2\u0080\u00A2 A n examination of the number of people involved in most frequent stationary activities including sitting, standing, children playing; \u00E2\u0080\u00A2 The proportion of people involved in social activities \u00E2\u0080\u00A2 Social activities types The observation took place on Saturday, Apr i l 30, 2005 at 5:30 pm. N o special events such as commercial shows or sales promotions were in evidence at the time. 30 Nurrber of s t a t i o n a r y a c t i v i t i e s 120 I 60 -0 I I \u00E2\u0080\u00A2 chi I dren pi ayi ng \u00E2\u0080\u00A2 st andi ng O s i t t i ng W E Diagram5.2: The number of stationary activities on Saturday, A pr i l 30 at 5:30 pm. P r o p o r t i o n o f p e o p l e i n v o l v e d i n s o c i a l a c t i v i t i e s 60 50 ! 40 o 30 | 20 10 0 N S W E X Z D J L Diagram5.3: The proportion of pedestrians involved in stationary activities at 5:30 pm on Saturday, A pr i l 30. 31 Diagram5.4: The number of stationary activities in each sub-area at 5:30 pm on Saturday A p r i l 30, shows on base map of study area. 5.1.3 Br ief Summary There are two periods of time in a day that the intensity of social activities is the highest: at noon and nightfall. According the comparison of different sub-areas in study area, we can find that Zhenghong pedestrian street normally has the highest number of people involved in sitting (366) and standing (153). Leifulai street corner has the highest proportion of people involved in social activities (51.5%), and Zhongyang street corner has the second highest proportion (48.7%). The activity of children playing was only found at Leifulai and Zhongyang street corners. Dongfang street corner plaza recorded the lowest number of stationary activities (2 people sitting and 6 people standing) and the lowest proportion of people involved in social activities (9.5%). 32 5.2. Pedestrian Density Pedestrian density is evaluated in three ways: the pedestrian volume at different times of a day, pedestrian flow rates (two-way pedestrians per minute per meter width), and pedestrian flow distribution. The purpose of recording the pedestrian volume per hour from morning to night in a day is to reflect the variation of pedestrian densities at different times of a day; the purpose of recording the pedestrian flow rate is to compare the pedestrian densities between each sub-area; the purpose of recording pedestrian flow distribution is to discover major and minor pedestrian flows at the site scale. 5.2.1.Pedestrian Densities at Different Times of a Day Recording was done of two-way pedestrians per hour, and pedestrians per minute, at nine observation points. Four in Zhenghong pedestrian street: west entrance (Diagram5.5), north entrance (Diagram5.6), east entrance (Diagram5.7), and south entrance(Diagram5.8). Five street corner plazas: Dongfang (Diagram5.9), Xinbai (Diagram5.10), Zhongyang (Diagram5.11), Jinying (Diagram5.12) and Leifulai (Diagram5.13) Observation time: 9 am to 11 pm, Wednesday Apr i l 6 t h , 2005. Weather: sunny, temperature: 20c- 25c 3 3 Diagram 5.5-Diagram5.13: Two way pedestrian counts per hour and per minute at the nine observation points Zhenghong pedest ri an st reet west ent r ance Wednesday 6 Apr i I 2005 8 0 0 0 7 0 0 0 6 0 0 0 5 0 0 0 4 0 0 0 3 0 0 0 . 2 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 1 6 0 6 O \u00C2\u00A31 . 6 0 0 U I 1 B M a ^ 3 2 3 5 EN _ 3 2 6 6 O S 1 0 1 1 1 2 1 3 1 4 1 5 1 6 1 7 1 8 1 9 2 0 2 1 2 2 1 0 1 1 1 2 1 3 1 4 1 5 1 6 1 7 1 8 1 9 2 0 2 1 2 2 2 3 ~ 120 c Z 30 9 1 0 1 1 1 2 1 3 1 4 1 5 1 6 1 7 1 8 1 9 2 0 2 1 2 2 2 3 Ti me iagram 5.5 Diagram 5.8 Zhenghong pedestrian street north ent ranee Wednesday 6 A p r i l 2005 8 0 0 0 7 0 0 0 ^ 6 0 0 0 O 5 0 0 0 - \u00C2\u00A3 4 0 0 0 ^_ 3 0 0 0 0 ) 2 0 0 0 a iooo 1 S 0 6 ^ 0 9 1 0 11 1 2 1 3 1 4 1 5 1 6 1 7 I B 1 9 2 0 2 1 2 2 1 0 1 1 1 2 1 3 1 4 1 5 1 6 1 7 1 8 1 9 2 0 2 1 2 2 2 3 1 0 1 1 1 2 1 3 1 4 1 5 1 6 1 7 I B 1 9 2 0 2 1 2 2 2 3 Diagram 5.6 Zhenghong pedestri an street east ent ranee VU&dnesday 6 Apr i I 2005 8 0 0 0 7 0 0 0 i - 6 0 0 0 Q 5 0 0 0 - C 4 0 0 0 W 3 0 0 0 V 2 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 iaJL 0 9 1 0 1 1 1 2 1 3 1 4 1 5 1 6 1 7 1 8 1 9 2 0 2 1 22 ~ 120 c 1 9 1 0 1 1 1 2 1 3 1 4 1 5 1 6 1 7 I B 1 9 2 0 2 1 2 2 2 3 Ti me Diagram 5.7 Zhenghong pedestrian street south entrance Wednesday 6 A p r i l 2005 4 3 2 6 4 3 1 9 n n fjl 3 4 5 6 3 4 4 9 S J m 1 ^ 1 I 1 i S u j 0 9 1 0 1 1 1 2 1 3 1 4 1 5 1 6 1 7 1 8 1 9 2 0 2 1 2 2 1 0 1 1 1 2 1 3 1 4 1 5 1 6 1 7 1 8 1 9 2 0 2 1 2 2 2 3 1 9 2 0 2 1 2 2 2 3 Ti ms 34 8000 l/> 7000 c ra our 6000 5000 c 4000 Pedes 1. 3000 01 a. 2000 Pedes 1 Dongf ang PI aza Wednesday 6 Apri I 2005 U L l l 7 3 2 1 0 3 2 1 9 3227 i l l 4 9 8 D i a g r a m 5.10 O S 1 0 1 1 1 2 1 3 1 4 I S 1 6 1 7 1 8 1 9 2 0 2 1 2 2 1 0 1 1 1 2 1 3 1 4 1 5 I E 1 7 1 8 1 8 2 0 2 1 2 2 2 3 Ti rre 120 9 1 0 1 1 1 2 1 3 1 4 I S 1 6 1 7 1 8 1 9 2 0 2 1 2 2 2 3 T i 1TB Diagram 5.9 Diagram 5.11 8000 C 6000 . - g 5000 \u00C2\u00A3 -C 4000 g i _ 3000 a. 1000 0 Xi nbai pi aza Wednesday 6 April 2005 2 7 4 9 2 7 3 8 2 S 7 6 . . . . 2 6 8 3 2 4 0 1 2 3 9 9 2 6 5 8 2 3 4 8 1 S 9 8 m m LGLIL II 0 9 1 0 1 1 1 3 1 4 1 5 1 6 1 7 1 4 1 5 1 6 1 7 1 8 1 8 1 9 2 0 2 1 2 2 1 9 2 0 2 1 2 2 2 3 20 21 22 23 8000 7000 6000 g 5000 \u00C2\u00A3 4000 ,_ 3000 gj. 2000 1000 0 Zhongyang pi aza Wednesday 6 Apri I 2005 4 1 2 9 4 ^ 789 ' I.I 3760 36023609 m 3259 pn rn i i i l l l 09 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 16 19 20 21 22 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 35 Diagram 5.12 iagram 5.13 Lei f ul ai PI aza Wednesday 6 A p r i l 2005 5.2.2 Pedestrian Density in Each Sub-area The pedestrian density in each sub-area is evaluated by the pedestrian flow rate (two-way pedestrians per minute per meter of street width). The highest flow rate in the nine observation points will be calculated based on two sets of data: average pedestrians per minute in peek hours, and the walkable street width. 36 Table 5.1: Pedestrian density of each sub-area Walkable Wid th Highest Two-way Pedestrians Per minute Flow rate \u00E2\u0080\u00A2 pedestrians per minute per meter street width \u00E2\u0080\u00A2 Zhenghong pedestrian street - north part(N) 14.3m 121 8.4 Zhenghong pedestrian street - south part(S) 12.2m 86 7 Zhenghong pedestrian street - west part(W) 14.9m 98 6.5 Jinying street corner (J) 12m 71 6 Zhongyang street corner (Z) 16m 70 4.3 Zhenghong pedestrian street- east par t (E) 18.8m 60 3.19 Lei fu la i street corner(L) 28 56 2 Xinba i street corner (X) 25m 48 1.92 Dongfang street corner (D) 52m 52 1 Pedestr ian densi ty of each subarea 1 6 \u00C2\u00BB 5 6 10 8 h CD 156 h s 4 o H 2 r 0 4 . 3 3 .19 1.92 1 _ i_y L J 1 N S W E X Z D J L Diagram5.14: Pedestrian density of each subarea 5.2.3 Pedestrian Flow Distributions at the Site Scale According to pedestrian flow mappings of Zhenghong pedestrian street (Appendix a-e), we can see that the spaces near the entrances of large-scale commercial services (eg: department stores, shopping malls) have comparably much denser pedestrian flows than other places. Most pedestrians prefer to shop in department stores and shopping malls. Spaces in the vicinity of jewelry and men's wear stores, tea bars and cafes, usually experience lower rates of pedestrian flows (Appendix a, Appendix e). If 37 the attractive commercial services (eg: department stores, shopping malls, clothing stores, etc.) are densely arranged along one side of a pedestrian street, while the other side is occupied by less attractive commercial services (eg: man's wear, tea bars, cafes, jewelry stores, etc.), this kind of unbalanced distribution of commercial services normally results in an unbalanced distribution of pedestrian flow. Pedestrian flows along the more attractive side are much denser than pedestrian flows along the less attractive side (Appendix a). The area with densest levels of pedestrian flow (Figure5.2) on Zhenghong pedestrian street was found in the area of the highest concentration of entrances to large-scale commercial services. There are three entrances of large-scale commercial services (two department stores, one underground shopping mall) directly facing this small space. This space is usually crowded with pedestrians due to a large volume of people entering and exiting the buildings. Figure5.2: The area with densest levels of pedestrian flow on Zhenghong pedestrian street. The shade area: the area with densest levels of pedestrian flows Red arrow: entrances o f department stores or a shopping malls. Based on the analysis of the pedestrian behavior mapping of Zhenghong pedestrian street (Appendix 1-5) and pedestrian flow mapping of Zhenghong pedestrian street (Appendix a-w), we see that the spaces with denser pedestrian flows have comparably more social activities occurring on them, especially the activity of standing. 5.2.4 Pedestrian Density and Social activity 1 ) Pedestrian density and its effect on social activity at different times of a day According to Diagram 5.1 (The number of social activities at different times of a day), and Diagrams 5.5-5 .13 (Pedestrian volume at different times of a day), we see that the number of social activities engaged in increased with increasing levels of pedestrian volumes. There are two periods of peak time for pedestrians and social activities: noon and nightfall. 2) Pedestrian density of each sub-area and their effect on social activities Zhenghong pedestrian street recorded the highest number of people involved in social activities (Diagram 5.4), as well as the average highest pedestrian density 38 (Diagram 5.14); Xinbai street corner (X) and Dongfang street corner (D) had the lowest number of people involved in social activities, and their pedestrian density was the lowest. 3) Pedestrian density on a local scale and its effect on social activities On a local scale, the places with dense pedestrian flows recorded a comparably greater number of social activities than the places which were distant from major pedestrian flows (Appendix 1-10, Appendix a-j). Based on the above analysis, we can conclude that there is a strong correlation between pedestrian density and the number of people involved in social activities. Normally, the higher the pedestrian density, the higher the number of people involved in social activities. However, no correlation was found between pedestrian density and the proportion of people involved in social activities (Diagram 5.3, Diagram 5.14). The pedestrian density of Leifulai plaza (L) is not high, but the proportion of people involved in social activities is the highest from among all the sub-areas. High pedestrian density of a given place does not necessarily guarantee the presence of pedestrian engagement in various social activity types. Zhenghong pedestrian street recorded the highest average number of people sitting and standing, but children were seldom found playing there. The activitiy of children playing was only found at Zhongyang street corner plaza (Z) and Leifulai street corner plaza (L). 5.3 Quanti ty and Qual i ty of Seating Spaces 5.3.1 Quantity Evaluation The evaluation of the quantity of seating spaces is based on on-peak observation and the calculation of seating quantity (m/m 2). According to the on-peak observation of the intensity of the use of sittable spaces, we can determine whether the quantity of seating spaces is enough or not. According to the calculation of seating quantity, we can compare the existing quantity of seating spaces in each sub-area with the conventional requirement. 5.3.1.1 On-peak Observation Except for the seating spaces located at east part of Zhenghong pedestrian street and Leifulai street corner, seating spaces in much of the study area were not able to accommodate the volumes of pedestrian use during peak hours. N o matter whether seating spaces were formal, such as benches, chairs and ornamental planters or informal, such as steps at entrances, bollards, or building niches, all were found to be densely occupied. 5.3.1.2 Comparison with Conventional Quantity Requirements Marcus (1998), in her book, People Places: Design Guidelines for Urban Open Spaces recommended one linear foot of seating (about 0.3m) for each thirty square feet (about 2.8 m 2) of urban open space. That is to say, about 0.1 meters of seating length for each 1 square meter of open space. Based on this criterion, 39 quantity of seating places is measured by the length of areas suitable for sitting in 1 m 2 of open space. According to this calculation, the length of an area suitable for sitting in each sub-area is far from the conventional requirement. Table 5.2: Quantity of seating in each sub-area Area Total length of Sittable length The varieties and (m2) seating space (m) (m/ m 2) number of seating and their sittable length(m) Zhenghong 14141 374.4 m 0.026 ml m 2 wood benches and Pedestrian m 2 chairs, tree planters, Street shrub planters, granite benches 1 )Zhenghong 3191 62 m 0.019 ml m 2 20 wood benches (36m), Pedestrian m 2 10 tree planters(26m) Street: north part (N) 2)Zhenghong 2423 57.6 m 0.024 ml m 2 4wood benches(28.8m), Pedestrian m 2 6concrete Street: south benches(28.8m) part(S) 3)Zhenghong 1524 67.6 m 0.044 ml m 2 7 tree planters(47.6m), Pedestrian m 2 steps and building Street: west niches(20m) part(W) 4)Zhenghong 2398 136 m 0.056 ml m 2 20tree planters(136m) Pedestrian m 2 Street: east part(E) henghong 4605 71.2 m 0.015 ml m 2 8wood chairs( 14.4m), edestrian Street: m 2 3 shrub planters(42m), ;ntral part(C) 1 shrub planters(14.8m) Lefulai Street 2707 175.5 m 0.065 ml m 2 5wood benches(8m), corner(L) m 2 20stone stools(8m), feature steps( 137.5m) shrub planters(22m) Jinying Street 371 m 2 9.6 m 0,026 ml m 2 6wood benches(9.6m) Corner(J) Xinbai Street 1569 26 m 0.0165 m / m 2 20wood chairs(26m) Corner(X) m 2 Zhongyang 799 m 2 10 m 0.0125 m / m 2 1 Oround granite Street stones(4m) Corner(Z) shrub planter(6m) 40 Dongfang Street Corner(D) 3577m2 24 m 0.006 nd m 2 6shrub planters(24m) Conventional requirement: one linear foot of seating for each thirty square feet of open space 13(0.1 meter of seating for 1 square meter of open space (0.1m/m2)D Qiant i t y of seat i ng spaces 0. 1 0.08 0. 06 0.04 0.02 0 n .0 .n i T L L E W J S N X C Z D Diagram 5.15: The quantity of seating in each sub-area 5.3.2 Quality Evaluation The evaluation of the quality of seating spaces within the study area is based on two aspects: a general evaluation according to the conventional requirements for quality seating, as clarified in Chapter 2, and off-peak observation. 5.3.2.1 General Evaluation - Zhenghong pedestrian street: 1) Tree planters comprise of 71% of the total seating spaces. Tree planters are arranged in line on the north, south, west and east parts of Zhenghong pedestrian street (Figures 5.4-Figure 5.7). 2) Only a small amount of building frontages have niches where people can sit, and they are situated on the western part (Figure5.3). Those spaces only became occupied when other formal seating spaces were full. 3) The seating space under the glass roof in the center part provides protection from rain, back protection, and has a clear view of surrounding pedestrian flows (Figure 5.9-Figure 5.11). 41 Figure5.3:Sittable niches in the west part Figure5.4: Wood benches and tree planters in the north part Figure5.8: Shrub planters Figure5.9: The glass roof at the center of Zhenghong pedestrian street Figure5.10: Shrub planters under the Figure5.11: Wood chairs under the glass glass roof roof - Leifulai street corner plaza: 1) The huge canopy of a tree in the center of Leifulai plaza forms an 43 intimate and comfortable seating environment for pedestrians, and provides shade on hot summer days (Figure 5.12). 2) There are a variety of seating spaces: in sun and in shade, exposed and private, individual and in group. 3) There are various seating opportunities: movable stone stools, feature steps, shrub planters, and wood benches (Figure 5.13-Figure 5.15) Figure5.12: The huge canopy tree at tlj center of Leifulai street corner plaza Figure5.14: Feature steps along the edge o f Leifulai street corner plaza Figure5.15: Wood benches along the curb edge Figure5.13: Movable stools und\u00C2\u00A3r the canopy tree L e i f u l a i s t ree t corner o laza 44 - Zhongyang street corner plaza The spaces suitable for sitting comfortably in Zhongyang street corner are the ten round stones around the fountains (Figure 5.16) and some curbs along the flower beds. The round stones that are situated around the fountains were frequently occupied by pedestrians, many of whom were parents who were watching their children playing around the fountain environment. Figure5.16: Round stones distributed around the fountains at Zhongyang street corner Xinbai street corner plaza Seating spaces include five groups of wooden chairs along the curb edge of Xinbai plaza. Each group is composed of four chairs with back and back orientation. The flower boxes between each group of chairs help to protect the privacy. The use of those chairs greatly is greatly reduced on hot summer days because they are fully exposed to the sun shine. edge of Xinbai plaza 45 Jinying street corner The seating spaces include six wood benches along the outer edge of Jinying street corner. There is nothing between each bench, and the distance between each bench is comparably short, at no more than 1 meter. These spaces were densely used during peak hours. corner Dongfang street corner plaza The total number of spaces suitable for sitting in Dongfang street corner plaza include six shrub planters (Figure 5.10). The height of the planters is less than the conventional sitting requirement (35-45 centimeters). The six planters are seldom used by pedestrians, even during peak hours (refer to Appendix 8: Behavior Mapping of Dongfang plaza). D o n g f a n g s t r e e t c o r n e r p l a z a Figure5.19: Shrub planters at Dongfang plaza 46 5.3.2.2 Off-peak Observation \u00E2\u0080\u00A2The wooden chairs under the glass roof (Figure 5.11) were found to be the most preferable seating places for pedestrians at Zhenghong pedestrian street. They were the first to be occupied. \u00E2\u0080\u00A2The second most preferable seating spaces were the ornamental planters under the glass roof (Figure 5.10). \u00E2\u0080\u00A2When all the seating spaces under the roof were full, people were forced to choose the shrub planters nearby (Figure 5.8). They first occupied the front side of the planters, facing the main pedestrian flow, while the rear side of the planters remained vacant (Figure 5.20). Figure 5.20: The sittable side facing main pedestrian flows was first occupied by pedestrians. \u00E2\u0080\u00A2Both wooden benches and stone planters are situated at the north part of Zhenhong pedestrian street (Figure 5.4). When given the choice, people chose the wood benches first. \u00E2\u0080\u00A2Informal seatings ( eg: steps, building niches, bollards, etc.) were seldom used during off-peak hours. \u00E2\u0080\u00A2People don't choose to sit at exposed seating spaces. The seating spaces of Dongfang plaza (Figure 5.19) have some negative attributes: exposure onto the wide and empty plaza, no back protection, no tree canopies, furniture or anything else which can provide some level of intimacy for people. Comparably speaking, the seating along the edge of Xinbai street corner and Jinying street corner (Figure 5.17 and Figure 5.18) were more preferable to pedestrians. According to the off-peak observation of pedestrians' preference for seating spaces, we can conclude that the general characteristics of good quality seating include: good views of the surrounding people, events and environment; have back protection; are made of wooden material with a backrest; provides a sense of intimacy (people sitting are not disturbed by pedestrian flows). 47 5.3.3 Br ie f Summary According to the quantity evaluation (Diagram 5.15), we can see that Leifulai street plaza has the highest quantity of seating (0.065m/m 2), and Dongfang plaza has the lowest quantity of seating (0.006m/m 2). Except for the seating spaces in Leifulai plaza and the eastern part of Zhenghong pedestrian street, all the other seating spaces are not adequate for pedestrian use due to the high volumes of pedestrian traffic and the lack of seating spaces available during to on-peak observation. According to the quality evaluation, Leifulai plaza has the best quality of seating. Leifulai plaza has high quality seating according to the conditions of weather protection, good views, and various seating options (eg: formal and informal, backed and backless, private or exposed, individual or group). Dongfang plaza has the worst quality of seating (exposed onto the empty plaza and disturbed by the main pedestrian flows), the seating spaces in Dongfang plaza were seldom used by pedestrians, even during peak hours. 5.3.4 Quantity and Quality of Seating Spaces and Social Activities Obviously, quantity and quality of seating spaces are directly related to the number of people sitting. During on-peak hours, the greater the quantity of seating available in a place, the higher the number of people sitting; during off-peak hours, people choose sit in the higher quality places. 5.4 Attractions and Entertainment Attractions and entertainment in pedestrian environments are features that can improve the sensual pleasure gotten from walking, and can include physical objects (eg. outdoor exhibits, sculptures, food facilities, water features, attractive landscaping, sidewalk cafes, etc.), people and events( eg. street performances, entertainers, street bands, etc.), and anything else that results in the discovery of something new or vital in one's surroundings. Different cultural backgrounds and living habits influence preferences for entertainment; for example, street bands, street entertainers, and sidewalk cafes are common features of street environments and entertainment in western countries. These, however, are seldom seen in Chinese cities. Table 5.3: Attractions and entertainment in pedestrian environments A : indicates that the study area has this kind of attractions; \u00E2\u0080\u00A2 : indicates that the study area doesn't have this kind of attractiveness Category Attractiveness and Entertainment People and events commercial shows, sales promotion A propaganda procession A street bands, street entertainers \u00E2\u0080\u00A2 \u00E2\u0080\u00A2 water feature A attractive floorscape \u00E2\u0080\u00A2 4 8 Landscape element sculpture \u00E2\u0080\u00A2 outdoor exhibits(eg: demonstration board) \u00E2\u0080\u00A2 film screen A outdoor cafe or outdoor tea bar \u00E2\u0080\u00A2 The most attractive landscape element in the study area are the jetting fountains in Zhongyang street corner plaza (Figure 3.13), where many children can be observed to play in the fountain environment. Lots of people stand around the fountains and watch the children playing (refer to Appendix 7: The behavioral mapping of Zhongyang street corner). The fountain environment in Zhongyang plaza is the only space in the study area that can attract so many children. The observation of pedestrians' gravitation towards water features in the study area was in accordance with western researchers' observation that water was the single most desired feature in public spaces (Whyte 1980 and Carr 1992). The film screen in Leifulai plaza is also an entertainment attraction, and it did attract many people to sit or stand and watching video clips of such things as important news, football games, Olympic games etc. The less attractive features are the demonstration boards. They sometimes attracted a single person or several pedestrians to linger. The events that could attract a large number of pedestrians in the study area were commercial shows or sales promotions, usually presented at the main entrances of department stores (refer to Figures 3.9 and Figure 3.10). These events embody some attractive attributes: music, people, stage performances, and something new or interesting, that provide a communication platform for social interactions. Their shortcomings include the problems of crowding and noise, and when the number of people around commercial shows increased, and the street space got more and more crowded, pedestrians' ability to walk freely was to a certain extent adversely effected,. Generally speaking, the attractions and entertainment value found within the study area was very limited. Many places in the study area were perceived by pedestrians as monotonous spaces, because there was nothing interesting to be found except for some basic seating spaces. 5.5 The Dimension of Pedestrian Environments 5.5.1 Street Capacity In the urban centers of many large Chinese cities, street capacity and pedestrian traffic are unavoidable (Wul999). Walking, standing, meeting, and playing all demand a need for space, and i f pedestrian density is too high, the freedom of movement is restricted and social activities are less likely to occur. Therefore, before we explore the interactions between the dimensions of pedestrian environments and pedestrians' use of streets, we must first make sure whether or not the existing street capacity can afford the highest levels of pedestrian traffic. That is to say, the ability to accommodate the highest levels of pedestrian flow is a basic requirement for the dimensions of a pedestrian environment. 49 Based on his study of pedestrians in Copenhagen, Jan Gehl figured that a flow rate of between 10 to 15 people per minute per meter of street width is the upper limit for an acceptable density in streets and on sidewalks with two-way pedestrian traffic. According to the calculations of the highest pedestrian flow rates in every sub-area, we find that the pedestrian environment in each sub-area can fully accomodate the highest rates of pedestrian flow. It was found to be unnecessary to broaden the dimension of existing pedestrian environments in the study area. In Chinese metropolitan cities like Nanjing, a pedestrian street with a 15-20 meters width can completely fulfill the street capacity requirements. Table5.4: The width of pedestrian environments and highest pedestrian flow rate of each sub-area Sub-areas Average width of Highest pedestrian pedestrian flow rate (two-way environment pedestrians per minute per meter of street width) Dongfang street corner (D) 52m 1 Zhenghong pedestrian 48m 3 street - central part(C) Leifulai street corner(L) 42m 2 Xinbai street corner (X) 25m 1.92 Zhongyang street corner 21m 4.3 (Z) Zhenghong pedestrian 23m 3.19 street - east part (E) Zhenghong pedestrian 19m 8.4 street- north part (N) Zhenghong pedestrian 16m 6.5 street - west part(W) Zhenghong pedestrian 13.5m 7 street - south part(S) Jinying street corner (J) 12m 6 Upper limit: 10-15 5.5.2 Observation of the Intensity of Social Activities at the Five Street Corners Within a range of 20-25 meters, people can relatively clearly perceive the feelings and moods of others (Gehl 1996). Based on this understanding, many researchers have argued that some pedestrian streets, with a width of more than twenty meters, or squares with a width more than forty meters are oversized, and not conducive to creating an atmosphere for promoting social interactions. The five street corner plazas (Zhongyang, Xinbai , Dongfang, Jinyin, and Leifulai) in the study area were chosen to evaluate the interactions between the dimensions of pedestrian 50 environments and the condition of people's use of street spaces. Dongfang street corner (52 meter width) and Leifulai street corner (48 meter width) were considered to be wide pedestrian environments; Xinbai street corner (25 meter width) and Zhongyang street corner (21 meter width) were considered to be medium-sized pedestrian environments; and Jinyin street corner (12 meter width) was categorized as a small-sized pedestrian environment. We can discover something from Pedestrian behavior mappings (Appendix6-10) and Pedestrian flow mappings of the five street corner plazas(Appendix f-j). The situations of street use were greatly varied. At the same time( at 5:30 pm on Saturday), there were only two people sitting, three people standing at Dongfang street corner plaza. Meanwhile at Jinying, Zhongyang, and Leifulai street corners, their number of people sitting and standing were much higher. The intensity of social activities at Dongfang was the weakest among the five street corners. People just went passed it, seldom standing or lingering, and much of the street spaces were not used for social activities at anytime (Figure 5.21 and Figure 5.22). The intensity of social activities in Xinbai was the second lowest. Except for the sitting spaces along the curb edge and the walking spaces for pedestrians along the building edge, other spaces were seldom used (Figure 5.23 and Figure 5.24). Figure5.23 and Figure5.24: Empty Xinbai plaza Leifulai street corner (refer to Appendix 10, Figure 5.12-Figure 5.15) has a width of 48 meters. However, the intensity of social activities was very strong. The huge canopy tree 51 at the center, the feature steps along the canopy tree, the ornamental planters, and the quality of seating all helped to create a sense definition and intimacy for the space as a whole. These specific design features have actually altered the perception of original broad dimensions of the street corner into a human scale. The warm, intimate small spaces created by the design features provide a suitable environment for pedestrians to sit, stand or play. Table 5.5: The intensity of social activities at the five street corner plazas Dimension of pedestrian environments Design configurations landscape elements Intensity of social activities large (more than 40m) Dongfang street corner (52 m) only six short shrub planters in the middle of the street space very low(people seldom sitting and standing, much of the street spaces unused) Leifulai street corner (42 m) huge canopy tree in the center, ornamental planters and feature steps along the edge, quality seating strong( many people sitting, standing, children playing) Medium ( 20-25m) Xinbai street corner (25m) five group of chairs along the outer edge A bit low( only several people standing) Zhongyang street corner (21m) feature fountains strong( many people standing and children playing) Small (less than 15m) Jinyin street corner (12m) benches and ornamental planters along the outer edge relatively strong (many people sitting and standing) The two main reasons that the intensity of social activities is weak at wide and empty street corners like Dongfang and Xinbai are that: \u00E2\u0080\u00A2 People usually take the shortest route. This implies that people normally won't choose the outer space of an over-dimensioned street corner for walking, because it involves a longer distance to walk. Therefore, pedestrian flows tend to only go through the inner side of the street corner. According to pedestrian behavior mappings (Appdendix 1-10) and pedestiran flow mappings (Appdendix a-j), we can see that the intensity of social activities is comparably weak at the places which are far from pedestrian flows. Just as Gehl (1996) said, \"Nothing happens, because nothing happens\". If there is nobody around, no social activities occur. 52 \u00E2\u0080\u00A2 N o quality seating, attractiveness, or anything which can create a sense of definition, intimacy or enclosure (eg: trees, columns, ornamental planters, sculptures, etc.) exist in the pedestrian environment to encourage a vibrant life and activity for pedestrians. 5.5.3 Dimension of Pedestrian Environments, and Social Activities Generally speaking, empty spaces of large dimensions are not conducive to social life and activities. Small, intimate spaces encourage activities because they provide a sense of warmth, definition and enclosure which are important for socially attractive spaces. Suitable design configurations and landscape elements can help create an outdoor environment which correlates well with the human sensory apparatus, as we have seen is the case on Leifulai street corner. Overly large spaces can be transformed into sociable spaces by adding elements that increase their attractiveness, quality seating or some vertical elements which can create a sense of intimacy and definition (eg: canopy trees, ornamental planters, columns, sculptures, etc.). 6 Noted Observations Regarding Pedestrians' W a l k i n g , Sitt ing, and Standing Behaviors The following are observations regarding pedestrians' walking, sitting, and standing behaviors in the study area according to on-site observations. Table5.6: General characteristics of pedestrian's walking, standing and sitting Characteristics W a l k i n g Pedestrians usually take the shortest routes Pedestrians tends to congregate where other people are assembled Pedestrians like to walk on ground level Standing Pedestrians' preferred standing in locations that included entrances of department stores or shopping malls, under cornices, along edges, under trees, near columns, etc. Pedestrians especially liked to stand singly or in groups at or near entrances of department stores, waiting for friends. Private conversations between two or three standing people occurred more frequently in spaces that were not disturbed by pedestrian flows. The denser the pedestrian flow in a place, the more people tended to stand in the place. Sitting Preferred seating included wood material, seats with back protection, locations with a sense of intimacy (eg. under trees, under roofs, along building walls, etc.), locations with good views of the surrounding environment. Women preferred more intimate seating spaces than men. 53 Some characteristics of children and old people's activities within the study area included: Children: Children were much more curious with regard their surrounding environment than were adults. They displayed a strong desire for touching any objects or material that interested them, including, leaves, flowers, water, stones, and walls, etc. Old people: Old people liked to play cards, chess and other social games, and they preferred to sit in intimate spaces. 5.7 Chapter Summary Chapter Five consisted of an evaluation of the four factors (pedestrian density, quantity and quality of seating spaces, attractions and entertainment, and dimension) in the study area and explored some of the correlations between the four aspects and the existence of pedestrians' social activities. People are the basic requirement for a sociable space. In a pedestrian environment, a sufficient pedestrian density is a prerequisite for generating social life and activities. A sufficient pedestrian density does not, however, necessarily guarantee the quality of social activities. Quality seating, attractions and entertainment, and a suitably dimensioned pedestrian environment are some important design features related to public open spaces which play an important role in influencing both the quantity and quality of social activities. The C B D of Nanjing City attracts a high volume of pedestrians due to its highly concentrated and multi-functional commercial services. The level of high pedestrian density in the study area provides a great potential for generating activities. In the meantime, it has also resulted in some problems: 1) the overcrowded pedestrian flows at some particular locations impede certain pedestrian social activities; 2) existing outdoor seating and recreation facilities are insufficient with regard to pedestrian demands for rest and amenities, especially during weekends or holidays. Understanding the correlations between the four factors and social activities clarified in this chapter help us propose practical and feasible recommendations for increasing both the quantity and quality of social activities. A s a result, it is hoped that the existing situation in study area can be improved. 54 Chapter Six: Findings and Recommendations Chapter Five explore the correlations between the four influencing factors and pedestrian's social activities. From the study, we have gained insight about how people act in commercial pedestrian environments; which kind of seating spaces and entertainment are preferred by pedestrians; what the preferable seating or standing locations are; how social activities correlate with pedestrian flow distributions; and how the dimension of pedestrian environments influence the use of streets, etc. We can thus get an indication as to how to solve some of the problems that were noted in the studied commercial pedestrian environments, and can extrapolate these to some Chinese city centers with similar situations to the study area. These problems are also reflected in the research questions of the study -how to arrange the movement spaces and rest spaces in a congested linear pedestrian environment; how to create sociable spaces in an overly large dimensioned pedestrian environment; how to arrange locations and physical configurations of seating spaces to provide for more sitting opportunities; how to facilitate attractive landscape elements, etc. In short, we can learn how to create a functional, recreational, and sociable commercial pedestrian environment. 6.1 Summaries of the Findings from the Study 1) There is a strong correlation between pedestrian density and the number of occurring social activities. Normally, the higher the pedestrian density in a place, the greater the volume of social activities. 2) The peak times of social activities on a day occur at noon and nightfall. 3) Spaces with denser pedestrian flows have comparably more social activities. 4) Department stores or shopping mall entries are more attractive to pedestrians for standing, talking and walking than other kinds of commercial services. There are much denser pedestrian flows around the entrances to department stores and shopping malls. 5) A n unbalanced distribution of commercial services results in an unbalanced pedestrian flow distribution. This is a main reason that pedestrian crowding problems occurred at particular locations. If the attractive commercial services (eg: department stores, shopping malls, clothes stores, etc.)are densely arranged along one side of a pedestrian street, while the other side is arranged with less attractive commercial services(eg: men's wear stores, tea bars, cafes, jewelry stores, etc.), pedestrian flows along the more attractive side are much denser than pedestrian flows along the less attractive side (Figure6.1). This appears from this study to be the main reason for the phenomenon that one side of a pedestrian street was crowded with pedestrians while the other side had much fewer pedestrians. 55 Figure6.1: A type of unbalanced distribution of commercial services a 11 less attactive commercial services (egtman's wear, jewelry store, tea bar, cafe. etc. Pedestr i an flow Unbalanced distribution of commercial services results in an unbalanced pedestrian flow distribution alI more attractive commercial services (eg:department store, shopp i ng ma 11, clothes store, etc.) If the entrances of department stores or shopping malls are arranged in a face-to face orientation, this kind of distribution easily results in pedestrian congestion problems due to large volumes of people passing in and out (Figure6.2). Figure6.2: Large-scale commercial services with face to face orientation Large-scale commercial services with face-to face orientation easily result in pedestrian congestion problems 6) Pedestrians' seating preference: Sense of intimacy, not disturbed by pedestrian flows, good views of surrounding environments, back protection, wood materials 7) Water features are the most attractive landscape elements especially to children. 8) Children like interactive activities. 9) The intensity of social activities is extremely weak at wide and empty street corners. They usually discourage pedestrians' social activities and are also a waste of urban space. 10) In Nanjing's urban center, the highest pedestrian flow rate figured out in the research report is about 7-8 people per minute per meter of street width, it is below the upper limit for an acceptable pedestrian density (Gehl proposed that 10-15 people per minute per meter of street width is the upper limit). Thus, from the point of street capacity, it was found to be unnecessary to broaden the dimension of existing pedestrian environments in the study area. Here I use North part of Zhenghong pedestrian street as an example to explain how to apply the value of upper limit for an acceptable pedestrian density proposed by Gehl to examine the suitability of the dimension of a pedestrian street. North part of Zhenghong pedestrian street has the highest pedestrian flow rate among all sub-areas during peak hours, the highest two-way pedestrians per minute at north part of Zhenghong pedestrian street is 121. Based on the value of upper limit for an acceptable pedestrian density (10-15 people per minute per meter o f street width), we can figure out the lower limit for the width of the walkable street space, which is about 8-12 meters, thus i f the street width of north part of Zhenghong pedestrian street is below 8-12 meters, the highest pedestrian flow rate wi l l exceed the upper limit. That is to say, normally, a commercial pedestrian street in the urban center of Nanjing with 15-20 meter width can totally fulfill street capacity requirements. This finding also implies that a width of 15-20 meters may be enough for the dimension of pedestrian streets in urban centers of some other Chinese cities which have a pedestrian density and situations similar to Nanjing city. 6.2 Recommendations for commercial pedestrian environments 6.2.1 Introduction The following recommendations and strategies may not be the only solution to the problems identified, these designs should be further evaluated much like this study did i f they can be put into effect. 6.2.2 Recommendations and Strategies A: Avoid planning an unbalanced commercial service distribution around a commercial pedestrian street Architects, city planners or urban designers should avoid planning an unbalanced distribution of commercial services. Unbalanced distribution of commercial services easily results in pedestrian crowding problems. Particularly, more attention should be paid to the positions of the main entrances of large-scale commercial services such as 57 department stores and shopping malls. Entrances of large-scale commercial services with face-to-face orientation should be avoided. On a commercial pedestrian street, more attractive commercial services and less attractive commercial services should be facilitated in a balanced way in order to prevent the unbalanced pedestrian flow distributions. B : Design a large setback at the entrance of large-scale commercial services on a pedestrian street There are comparably much denser pedestrian flows and a great number of social activities at the entrances of large-scale commercial services, especially department stores or shopping malls. Therefore, entrance setbacks help to mitigate the pressure of pedestrian flows, and create free spaces for pedestrians' activities like standing, sitting, etc. The setback can be designed as an entry plaza with some seating facilities. Figure6.3: Design a large entrance setback for large-scale commercial services C: The design of pedestrian environments should be based on the distribution of pedestrian flows (CI) Arrange more rest and recreation facilities at places with higher pedestrian The higher the pedestrian density (the denser the pedestrian flows) of a place, the more need for rest spaces and recreation facilities. This is a basic consideration for setting the quantity of seating spaces or recreation facilities. There is no need to arrange too many public facilities in places with a very low pedestrian density. Arranging public facilities on the basis of actual need is an efficient way to increase the use of seating or recreation facilities, and reduce unnecessary costs involved with building public facilities. For example, regarding the north, south, west and east parts of Zhenghong pedestrian street, the quantity requirement for public facilities of each part differs due to their various Entrance setbacks of large-scale commercial services help to mitigate the pressure of pedestrian flows and create some free spaces for pedestrian's act ivi t ies densities. 58 pedestrian densities. The north part has the highest pedestrian density (highest flow rate: 8.4 people per minute per meter street width), the south part (highest flow rate: 7), the west part (highest flow rate: 6.5), and the east part has the least pedestrian density (highest flow rate: 3.19). Thus, more seating spaces should be arranged on the north, rather than on the east part of Zhenghong pedestrian street, as this side experiences much lower levels of pedestrian density. (C2) Rest spaces should not be arranged right in the middle of main pedestrian flows. Pedestrians dislike seating spaces disturbed by pedestrian flows. For example, the seating spaces exposed on Dongfang street corner are located right in the middle of main pedestrian flows, seldom people were observed to used those seating spaces. When people use this seating, they are disturbed by pedestrian traffic, and the seating arrangements do not provide a sense of security and intimacy for people. Rest spaces which are separated from pedestrian flow disturbance are given preference (Figure 6.4). Seating spaces along the edge of a space are usually welcomed by pedestrians because they are not easily disturbed by main pedestrian flows, and moreover, they provide a good view of surrounding environments Figure6.4: Positioning seating spaces at places without being disturbed by pedestrian flows by pedestrian flows pedestrian flows (C3) Use flexible strategies to arrange the position of rest spaces on pedestrian streets based on the analysis of pedestrian flow distributions Rest spaces and walking spaces on a pedestrian street are equally important. On a pedestrian street with a high volume of pedestrian traffic, rest spaces should not occupy too much of the walking spaces. We can use a flexible strategy to arrange the positions of rest spaces according to the conditions of the pedestrian flow distribution on a pedestrian 59 street. The pedestrian flow density differs from place to place on a pedestrian street due to different adjacent commercial service types. Before positioning a rest space, we could first estimate the pedestrian flow distribution on the site, and based on this, find a suitable position for rest spaces. It is most efficient to arrange these in spaces with comparably lower levels of pedestrian flows. For example, at the north part of Zhenghong pedestrian street, the west side of the street space has much denser pedestrian flows than the east side. This is mainly because the commercial services (shopping mall, department store, and clothing stores) along the west side are much more attractive to pedestrians than those (jewelry store, men's wear, blank wall) along the east side. Thus, the west side of the street space is usually crowded with pedestrians. Under these conditions, it would be better to move the original rest spaces from the middle of the walkway to a position close to the east side, because the east side of the street space has lower levels of pedestrian flows (Figure 6.5). This is a strategy that would be satisfactory for both sides. For one thing, it would create more space for walking on the west side of the street, and mitigate the pressure of pedestrian flows. Also positioning rest spaces away from dense pedestrian flows can reduce the disturbance of pedestrian traffic, and thus create an increased sense of intimacy for people who are resting. Figure 6.5: A flexible strategy to arrange the position of rest spaces Use f l e x i b l e s t ra teg ies to arrange the p o s i t i o n of rest spaces according to the condi t ion of pedestr ian flow d i s t r i b u t i o n Original posi t ion of rest spaces Recommended posi t ion of rest spaces D: Strategies to increase the quantity and quality of seating (DI) Create multi-purpose types of seatings 60 Flag poles, bollards, flower boxes, concave spaces of buildings should be designed to provide seating opportunities. These are effective ways to increase the quantity of seating spaces. (D2) Create seating configurations with face to face orientation If the conditions permit, seating spaces can be arranged in a variety of configurations, providing opportunities for group conversations. Seating spaces with concave edges help to encourage group interactions because they provide opportunities for face to face orientation (Figure 6.6). Figure6.6: Basic seating configurations that encourage group interactions (D3) Create benches that are two backsides deep in order to provide more seating edges In a pedestrian environment that is extremely short of rest spaces, benches with two backsides deep should be greatly encouraged, because seating choice is greatly enlarged and more people can sit without feeling crowded ( Figure 6.7). Figure6.7: Benches with two backsides deep provide more seating opportunities Benches wi th two backsides deep have much more sea t ing oppo r tun i t i es (D4) Apply a combination of seating configurations in order to greatly enlarge the area of seating edges and create opportunities for group interactions Very often, one row of seating space is arranged in the middle of a commercial pedestrian street, such as in Zhenghong pedestrian street. Often, these rows are in the 61 form o f a row of tree planters, benches or chairs. It would be more efficient to apply a kind o f seating configuration which could allow more people to sit without occupying an increased area of the walking space (Figure 6.8). Figure 6.8 illustrates a kind of seating configuration which possesses some good qualities: many more edges that can be used for seating, more seating choices, and encouraging group interaction. Figure 6.8: Recommended seating configuration in the middle of a pedestrian street I ' two b a c k s i d e s deep (two s i t t a b l e edges) \u00E2\u0080\u00A2 B a c k r e s t *\"concave edge (encourage group i n t e r a c t i o n ) t Recommended seat ing c o n f i g u r a t i o n E : Strategies to change a pedestrian environment of overly large dimensions into a human-scaled space Extremely wide and empty pedestrian environments do not correlate well with the human sensory apparatus, and thus impede social interaction. However, a suitable design configuration and appropriate landscape elements can help to improve these conditions. The key points are to reinforce or create a sense of scale, a sense of spatial containment, and create the feeling of a 'space within a space'. ( E l ) Apply floorscape to introduce scale to a space Floorscape here mainly refers to the 'hard' pavement. Floorscape can not only enhance the aesthetic character of a space, but can also introduce scale and divide space. Floorscape patterns often perform the important aesthetic function of breaking down the scale of large, hard surfaces into more manageable human proportions. The detail and modulation paving patterns tend to make a big space seem smaller and human-scaled (Figure 6.9), while a simple and unadorned treatment has the reverse effect. 62 (E2)Apply floorscape to divide the rest space from the movement space in a pedestrian environment Floorscape can be applied to divide the rest space from the movement space o f a pedestrian environment. Figure 6.10 illustrates an example of how the feature paving arranged at the seating space helps to reinforce its separation from the walking space, creates a sense of order for the whole, provides a sense of domain, as well as a sense of spatial containment for the people who are resting. Figure 6.10: Apply the floorscape to divide the rest space from the movement space Rest space Feature paving Floorscape helps to clearly divide the rest space from movement space, and reinforces a sense of order and a sense of domain 63 (E3) Apply vertical elements to create definition and human scale to an over-dimensioned pedestrian environment A pedestrian environment is deemed as an over-dimensioned space when it is seen to have lost its three-dimensional effect. According to the former research report, we find that some street corners, like Dongfang and Xinbai street corners, are too wide and empty to encourage engagement in social activities. Unlike those pedestrian streets with buildings along both sides of the street space, street corners like Dongfang and Xinbai only have one building facade to create definition to the space. Thus, i f the width of those street corners is too wide, they easily lose their three-dimensional effect. The three-dimensional effect of a space can be enhanced by vertical elements such as trees, columns, sculptures, walls, etc. These vertical elements, combined with landscape elements (such as seating, shrub planters, flower boxes, feature steps, water features, etc.) all help to form small, interesting spaces within a big space (Figure 6.11). The small, intimate spaces correlate well with the human scale, providing niches for people, and thus encouraging active use of the street. Figure 6.11: Apply vertical landscape elements to reinforce the three-dimensional effect Wide and empty overdimentioned space Landscape elements such as trees, p lanters, seatings re inforce the three-dimensional e f fec t of a space and help to form intimate, human-scaled spaces within an overdimensioned space F : Create interactive landscape attractions in pedestrian environments Fountains were found to be very attractive to pedestrians in the study area. The jets of water give pedestrian environments a playful feeling irresistible to children. Many different types of attractions and entertainment can pull people in. The most effective are those that possess an interactive function which greatly helps to build a playful interrelationship between people and the attraction, and thus help to encourage the use of the pedestrian environment. The following are some examples of how to create an interactive relationship between pedestrians and landscape attractions. ( F l ) Create interactive sonic fountains: When people come closer to a sonic fountain, the fountain begins to spray and a music feature is activated. 64 Figure6.12: Interactive sonic fountain (F2) Create activated floorscape lighting: The lighting system under the glass paving is activated by step pressure; when it is stepped on, the light starts to reflect through the glass paving. Figure6.13: Activated floorscape lighting These interactive devices do not need to maintain a working status all through the day for the purpose of economizing energy. According to the research report, pedestrian peak hours occur at noon (11:00 am-2:00 pm) and nightfall (6:00 pm-8:00 pm). The intensity of social activities during peak hours is also at its highest. Thus, the interactive devices can be turned on only during the peak hours. During peak hours, they can greatly and effectively encourage social activities. The floorscape lighting can be turned on for a longer time, until 9 pm, because after 9 am there is a sharp decrease in pedestrian volumes. (F3)Create textured art walls that encourage children to touch and play Textured art walls can be introduced as a kind of attraction in pedestrian environments to replace the existing dull and blank walls in the study area. The on-site observation revealed that children demonstrated a strong desire to touch any object such as water, 65 leaves, stones and walls, etc., that caught their attention. The art wall with both hollowed-out and protruding surfaces can encourage children's touch and play. Figure 6 .14: The art wall with both hollowed-out and protruding surfaces 6.3 Conclusion 6.3.1 Summaries of the Study This study applied pedestrian studies as the research method to explore some important relationships between pedestrians' social activities and the four influencing factors in the commercial pedestrian environment of Nanjing City. As a scientific research method, pedestrian studies helps us understand more about how people behave in urban spaces, and also helps us to discover some principles to encourage social life and activities. Most importantly, pedestrian studies helps us find practical and feasible ways to solve the problems. Finding and applying these solutions is vital to the success of a revitalization project. The author hopes that the above pedestrian study report of Nanjing City can offer practical, positive and valuable information to architects, city planners or urban designers who are involved in doing revitalization projects for urban public spaces. The author also hopes the findings from the study will give some indications for further research. 6.3.2 Indications for Future Research This study may provide some indications for doing a more in-depth, systematic study on people and commercial pedestrian environments. Through this study, I found some seemingly regular patterns in the distribution of pedestrian flows in a commercial pedestrian environment. It is hoped that the patterns, and others that have yet to be identified, will be able to provide research value and guidance to professionals involved in the design of commercial pedestrian streets. We may also identify a practical method of estimating the general pedestrian flow distribution on a pedestrian street through analyzing the surrounding commercial service types and layout, the behavior characteristics of pedestrian's walking patterns, and the existing spatial configuration of the pedestrian environment. Understanding the 66 condition of the pedestrian flow distribution helps us solve some key problems such as finding optimal positions for rest spaces, landscape elements or entertainment facilities. Further research may be taken to determine a seating quantity standard for commercial pedestrian environments in the urban centers of Chinese metropolitan cities. Although North-American's seating quantity requirements are based on the total area of the open space, it is perhaps more reasonable for China's seating quantity standard for commercial pedestrian environments to be based on average pedestrian density. 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Southeast University Press. 1999. 69 Appendix 1: Pedetrian Behavior Mapping - North Part of Zhenghong Pedestrian Street 70 Underground parking Date: April 30 2005 Time: 5:30pm Weather: Sunny, warm L E G E N D : 4 Person standing Large group of people standing 0 Small group of people standing 1 Person sitting down A Children playing Q ) T r e e o Bin i* Lighting Column B Concrete Seating | Wood Bench Appendix 2: Pedetrian Behavior Mapping - South Part of Zhenghong Pedestr ian Street 71 a i o Date:Apri!30 2005 Time: 5:30pm Weather: Sunny, warm + - r -o LEGEND: f Person standing ^ Large group of people standing 0 Small group of people standing 1 Person sitting down Children playing Tree PLanter Bin Lighting Column Main Entrance of Department Store Appendix 3: Pedetrian Behavior Mapping - West Part of Zhenghong Pedestrian Street 72 Appendix 4: Pedetrian Behavior Mapping - East Part of Zhenghong Pedestrian Street 73 LEGEND: \u00E2\u0080\u00A2 Person standing ^.i^jj Tree PLanter ! | Large group of people standing 0 Bin i- Lighting Column B Shrub Planter 0 Small group of people standing 1 Person sitting down A Children playing Shrub Planter Bollard 0 j Tree Box =\" Chairs A . Main Entrance of Department Store Ci. Main Entrance of Underground Shoping Mall Appendix 5: Pedetrian Behavior Mapping - Central Part of Zhenghong Pedestrian Street 74 4 Person standing J|U Large group of people standing \u00E2\u0080\u00A2 Small group of people standing ^ Person sitting down fa Children playing Tree Bin Date: April 30 2005 Time: 5:30pm Weather: Sunny, warm i- Lighting Column \u00C2\u00AE Flower Pot ta Guide-post Four wood chairs positioned together | B a a | Flag Pole with seating edge Entrance of Underpass \u00E2\u0080\u00A2Ik, Main Entrance of Department Store Appendix 6 : Pedetrian Behavior Mapping - Xinbai Plaza 75 O Small group of people standing Shrub Planter A Person sitting down 4k* Main Entrance of Department Store A Children playing \u00C2\u00BB Entrance of Underpass Appendix 7: Pedetrian Behavior Mapping - Zhongyang Street Corner 76 Date: April 30 2005 Time: 5:30pm Weather: Sunny, warm L E G E N D : 4 Person standing Q Large group of people standing O Small group of people standing ^ Person sitting down A Children playing N if. i. i- Lighting Column Tree PLanter *V Main Entrance of Department Store *> Entrance of Underpass + Appendix 8: Pedetrian Behavior Mapping - Dongfang Plaza 77 Appendix 9: Pedetrian Behavior Mapping - Jinying Street Corner 78 Date; April 30 2005 Time: 5:30pm Weather: Sunny, warm LEGEND: 4 Person standing Large group of people standing O Small group of people standing ^ Person sitting down A Children playing ~f Lighting Column \u00C2\u00AE Flower Pot \-J^_JJ Shrub Planter \u00C2\u00BB Bin t=> Wood Bench o Stone Stool ft* Entrance of Underpass Append ix lO: Pedetr ian Behavior Mapping - Leifulai P L a z a 79 Appendix a : P e d e s t r i a n F low Mapp i ng - North Part of Zhenghong Pedestrian Street 80 Appendix b: P e d e s t r i a n FI ow Mapp i ng - South Part of Zhenghong Pedestr ian Street 81 Appendix c : P e d e s t r i a n F l o w Mapp i ng - West Part of Zhenghong Pedestr ian Street 82 Appendix d : P e d e s t r i an FI ow Mapp i ng - East Part of Zhenghong Pedestr ian Street 83 Appendix e : P e d e s t r i a n F l o w M a p p i n g - Central Part of Zhenghong Pedestr ian Street 84 Appendix f: P e d e s t r i a n Flow Mapp ing - Xinbai P laza 8 5 AppendixQ: Pedes t r i an Flow Mapp i ng - Zhongyang Street Corner 86 > Appendixh: Pedestr ian Flow Mapp i ng - Dongfang Plaza 87 Appendix j : P e d e s t r i a n F low Mapp i ng - Leifulai P laza 89 "@en . "Thesis/Dissertation"@en . "2006-05"@en . "10.14288/1.0092554"@en . "eng"@en . "Landscape Architecture"@en . "Vancouver : University of British Columbia Library"@en . "University of British Columbia"@en . "For non-commercial purposes only, such as research, private study and education. Additional conditions apply, see Terms of Use https://open.library.ubc.ca/terms_of_use."@en . "Graduate"@en . "Exploration of four factors influencing people\u00E2\u0080\u0099s social activities in commercial pedestrian environments : a case study of Nanjing"@en . "Text"@en . "http://hdl.handle.net/2429/17715"@en .