A Model for Assessing Pedestrian Corridors. Application to Vitoria-Gasteiz City (Spain)

Abstract

From a mobility perspective, walking is considered to be the most sustainable transport mode. One of the consequences of motor-oriented urban configuration on pedestrian mobility is urban fragmentation, which affects sustainability in cities. In this paper, we use a natural-based approach to landscape fragmentation and connectivity (inherited from landscape ecology) for pedestrian mobility planning. Our aim is to design a useful methodology to identify priority pedestrian corridors, and to assess the effects of implementing barrier-free pedestrian corridors in the city. For this purpose, we developed a method that integrates Geographical Information Systems (GIS) network analysis with kernel density methods, which are commonly used for designating habitat corridors. It was applied to Vitoria-Gasteiz (Spain). Pedestrian mobility was assessed by comparison of travel times between different scenarios. Results show that the implementation of pedestrian corridors reduces travel time by approximately 6%. Thus, an intervention in a small percentage of the city's street network could considerably reduce pedestrian travel times. The proposed methodology is a useful tool for urban and transport planners to improve pedestrian mobility and manage motorised traffic.

Associations of Urban Environment Features with Hypertension and Blood Pressure across 230 Latin American Cities

“…Although we are not aware of prior studies explicitly examining fragmentation and hypertension prevalence, we hypothesize that higher levels of fragmentation may make it difficult to go from one place to another by active travel modes, may create air pollution and noise by exacerbating reliance on motorized travel, and may decrease access to health services. There is some emerging evidence connecting fragmentation with walkability ( Delso et al. 2017 ; Ortega et al.…”

Street walking quality of the ‘Centro’ district, Madrid

“…Walkingwhich in the past was viewed as part of a trip chain in a motorised modeis now considered a stand-alone mode (Litman, 2003). Numerous recent urban planning initiatives also revolve around active modes and seek to improve the quality and quantity of spaces dedicated to active mobility (Delso et al, 2017(Delso et al, , 2018, since the design of more pedestrian-friendly built environments can increase the convenience of walking (Blecic et al, 2017). The literature contains a large body of research on the environmental factors that influence walking (Ewing & Handy, 2009;Leslie et al, 2007;Saelens et al, 2003;Talavera-Garcia & Soria-Lara, 2015).…”

Investigating urban form, and walkability measures in the new developments. The case study of Garnizon in Gdansk

“…The third issue mentioned in the research is the pedestrian permeability of the area, a concept that is mostly used in urban design and can be defined as "the extent to which a particular urban morphology is permeated by publicly accessible space" (Pafka and Dovey, 2017). The permeable area can be associated with the dense connection of the street patterns and the lack of barriers (Delso et al, 2017). Urban researchers and planners have long been interested in the relationship between the configuration of the street network and mobility (Porta et al, 2006).…”