Evaluating Experiential Qualities of Historical Streets in Nanxun Canal Town through a Space Syntax Approach

Abstract

Many studies have been conducted to measure the experiential qualities of historical streets using the standards and principles released by many global organizations. However, little attention has been paid to the effect of spatial characteristics of historical heritage. This study proposes a space syntax-based methodology, first developed by Bill Hillier and Julienne Hanson with colleagues from the Bartlett School of Architecture, while introducing factors such as complexity, coherence, ‘mystery’, and legibility from the work of environmental psychologist Stephen Kaplan and the urban designer Gordon Cullen. Our intention is to help inform urban designers in understanding people’s spatial cognition of historical streets, and thereby assist designers and managers in identifying where cognitive experiences can be improved. The proposed method is applied to Nanxun, which is a developed canal town currently in decline in Zhejiang Province, China. This will be treated as the case study in order to explore the implication of the space syntax analysis. The impact from spatial characteristics on the evaluation is indirect and largely determined by the road-network of the canal town. As for Nanxun, the findings of this research suggest that the government’s priority is to solve current negative tourist perception based on a conservation restoration plan. The findings of this research provide a reference for policymakers to better understand the experiential qualities of historical streets in townscapes.

Computational Analytical Methods for Buildings and Cities: Space Syntax and Shape Grammar

“…The 14 articles were authored by 41 international scholars, with a research focus on buildings and cities in Australia, Brazil, China, Denmark, Greece, Germany, Hungary, France, Sweden, South Africa, and the United States. The eleven original research articles on Space Syntax explore a range of built environments-courtyard houses [4], laboratories in history [5], art museums [6], mega-shelters [7], public libraries and their surrounding areas [8], a subway station [9], historic streets [10], rural settlements [11], and urban districts [12][13][14].…”

“…Xu, Rollo, and Esteban [10] measure the experiential qualities of historical streets in Nanxun, China, which is a Beijing-Hangzhou Grand Canal town. They use a combined method of ALA, VGA, and ABS and derive four factors, complexity, coherence, mystery, and legibility, from environmental psychology and urban design theories, the knowledge of which is intended to help designers and policymakers understand and improve cognitive experiences in historical streets.…”

Research on Urban Street Network Structure Based on Spatial Syntax and POI Data

“…In empirical research and quantitative analysis of urban space in China, most of them are based on spatial syntax, which also proves the inherent logic between spatial form and spatial function. Scholars mainly use spatial syntax to study spatial structure [15], road network morphology [16], and street space shaping [17]. Most scholars use geometric and topological analysis methods to analyse street space morphology.…”

Accessibility of Urban Tourism in Historical Areas: Analysis of UNESCO World Heritage Sites in Safranbolu

“…Studies carried out with the space syntax method generally focus on developing solutions for urban design by concentrating on issues such as the spatial organization of urban open spaces and the relationship between human and pedestrian movements. The space syntax analysis has been preferred in previous research on historical areas as it provides a visualized and quantitative approach to the exploration and investigation of historical districts in these areas of management, conservation and planning [23]. Hillier and Hanson [24] focus on the potential for the use of space through the relationship between people and space.…”