Publication

Optimizing neighborhood-scale walkability

Andrew James Sonta
2019
Article de conférence
Résumé

Many designers and researchers have grappled with the problem of optimally locating buildings and use types in a neighborhood-scale development. But little work has used data-driven optimization to aid in creating urban design schemes. The paradigm of single-use Euclidian zoning has heavily impacted the way our neighborhoods, cities, and suburbs are designed, resulting in the physical separation of uses. However, as we grapple with emerging issues of environmental and social sustainability in cities, there is a pressing need to consider alternative urban designs that require less dependence on personal automobiles and that foster healthier cities. In this paper, we develop a methodology for (1) automatically assessing the walkability of neighborhoods by adopting a common walkability metric and (2) optimizing the layout of buildings and amenities across a known grid in order to maximize the walkability metric. We apply this methodology to a case study of the Potrero Hill neighborhood in San Francisco, California. We find that, in comparison to the existing layout that can be characterized by Euclidian-style separation of uses, the optimized layout suggests distributing amenities across the street network, resulting in a two-fold increase in walkability. This tool and analysis have the potential to provide computational and data-driven support for urban designers and researchers hoping to understand and improve the walkability of urban spaces.

À propos de ce résultat
Cette page est générée automatiquement et peut contenir des informations qui ne sont pas correctes, complètes, à jour ou pertinentes par rapport à votre recherche. Il en va de même pour toutes les autres pages de ce site. Veillez à vérifier les informations auprès des sources officielles de l'EPFL.

Graph Chatbot

Chattez avec Graph Search

Posez n’importe quelle question sur les cours, conférences, exercices, recherches, actualités, etc. de l’EPFL ou essayez les exemples de questions ci-dessous.

AVERTISSEMENT : Le chatbot Graph n'est pas programmé pour fournir des réponses explicites ou catégoriques à vos questions. Il transforme plutôt vos questions en demandes API qui sont distribuées aux différents services informatiques officiellement administrés par l'EPFL. Son but est uniquement de collecter et de recommander des références pertinentes à des contenus que vous pouvez explorer pour vous aider à répondre à vos questions.