A Preliminary Assessment on the Accessibility of Urban Green Spaces: The Case of Bursa, Yıldırım

Abstract

The irreversible reduction of urban open and green spaces has increased the environmental problems in cities on the one hand, and negatively affected the quality of urban life on the other. Bringing the city and nature together again has become a common concern for the environment-city-focused professions. Green infrastructure systems, one of the approaches put forward with these concerns by increasing the capacity of ecosystem services. Yıldırım, which was examined in this study, is one of the main districts of Bursa in terms of population and area. The lack of green space is intense in Yıldırım. Within the scope of the study, the pedestrian accessibility of green areas in selected 15 neighborhoods around Bursa Technical University was carried out. The results of the study show that while green areas are accessible, the neighborhoods have a critical situation in terms of the amount of green space per person. It is aimed that the results obtained will constitute a base for studies that will evaluate green areas as an infrastructure element.

Analysis of Urban Green Area Accessibility and Quality for Ecosystem Services as a Spatial Decision Support: In the City of Erzurum (Turkey)

“…The existence of parks planned to be built according to the zoning plan was determined by processing the plans obtained from the municipality. After determining the size and distribution of the park areas, according to the accessibility distances determined in other studies, 300-400-600-800 and 1000m zones were laid around the park areas and 30-70-100-150 and 350 m zones around the children's playgrounds [68,69].…”

Analysis of Çanakkale City Center Active Green Area Potential in GIS Platform

“…In this study conducted in Erbil city, 300 m (5 minutes walking distance), 600 m (10 minutes walking distance), 900 m (15 minutes walking distance) were evaluated and maps were prepared with the help of GIS (Kemeç and Abdalkarim, 2023). In another study on the accessibility of green areas in 15 neighborhoods in Bursa Yıldırım District, walking distances of 250 m and 500 m were determined in the accessibility analysis of green areas (Atanur, et al, 2022). In this study, it was emphasized that the accessibility of open green areas is not the only criterion for the adequacy of green areas in urban areas, and that the size, quality and maintenance of open green areas are also important (Atanur, et al, 2022).…”

“…In another study on the accessibility of green areas in 15 neighborhoods in Bursa Yıldırım District, walking distances of 250 m and 500 m were determined in the accessibility analysis of green areas (Atanur, et al, 2022). In this study, it was emphasized that the accessibility of open green areas is not the only criterion for the adequacy of green areas in urban areas, and that the size, quality and maintenance of open green areas are also important (Atanur, et al, 2022).…”

“…The accessibility of green areas is as important as the amount of green area in urban areas (Laan and Piersma, 2021). The fact that urban dwellers can access green areas both within walking distance and using public transportation is one of the desired criteria for livable cities as it will reduce car dependency (Atanur, et al, 2022). In the UK, an access distance of 300 m is envisaged as the impact area for access to green areas, while the European Environment Agency envisages an access distance of approximately 1000 m (Özgeriş, 2023).…”

“…In the UK, an access distance of 300 m is envisaged as the impact area for access to green areas, while the European Environment Agency envisages an access distance of approximately 1000 m (Özgeriş, 2023). The proportion of green area in European cities has increased by 38% in the last 25 years, and 44% of the population living in European cities live close to a public park that is at least 300 meters away (Atanur, et al, 2022). Investigating the standard of green area per capita and accessibity of active green areas are important in terms of determining the current situation and the strategies envisaged for the future.…”