MAPPING THE IMPACT OF TRAFFIC ON THE

LIVABILITY OF STREETS

UNIVERSITY OF JORDAN ARCHITECTURAL DEPARTMENT URBAN DESIGN DR. NABEEL AL KURDI STUDENTS: AYAH SAMARA REEM THAWABEH

1

Index..

Abstraction 2 Methodology 3 Introduction 4 Local Case Stud 7 Questionnaire 10 Data Statistics 13 Charts 15 Conclusions 17 Recommendations 18 References 19

2

Abstract..

Motivation: Relationships between neighbors vary from one place to another; in some neighborhoods you find neighbors closely related while in others they barely know one another. Also dwellers of various areas differ in the way that they conceive their area`s streets, buildings and other elements. In this paper we study some of the factors affecting those phenomena trying to give conclusions for a better understanding. Problem statement: Lack of understanding of the factors affecting one`s feeling towards his neighborhood and his degree of interaction with other dwellers of the same neighborhood. Approach: We took examples in three different areas each having a different type of street passing through it. The first is an area which has a highway passing through it, another is an area which has an active branch street passing which connects two larger streets making that area a crossing, and the last one being an enclosed area with streets passing only to serve that specific area. Aim: Mapping the impact of traffic in streets on the livability of the area they cross. Result: A paper that provides analyzed case studies on the proposed phenomena, giving out conclusions to better digest it.

3

Methodology..

Goals: The aim of this paper is to provide a better understanding of the factors affecting people’s attitudes towards the streets they occupy by mapping the impact of traffic in streets on the livability of the areas that they cross. Methodology: We studied the research “ Mapping the impact of traffic on the livability of streets “ conducted by Donald Appleyard – a professor of urban design at the university of California- back in 1969. Based on that research we chose three streets in Amman each with a different amount of traffic; Al Khulafa` Al Rashedeen street in Al Kursi area, Adnan Al Khawaldeh street in Um Al Summaq, and Fatimah Bent Al Khattab street in Al Nuzha, to study the impact of traffic in a street on the livability of the areas that they cross. First we put a questionnaire for the people who live in those streets to see how much they are attached to their streets and how many details they know of the area they live in and the buildings that are on those streets, we also drew an elevation of each street showing the buildings on each side, and we included that elevation in the questionnaire of each area asking people to draw points in the crowded spots in their street, and lines that show where a person usually goes on foot.We also asked each person to draw a circle that define his or her territory area, or which area he or she felt like it`s their own or they belong to. We put the results of the questionnaires in tables and charts in order to get our conclusion about each of the streets that we chose.

4

Introduction..

Donald Appleyard was a professor of Urban Design at the University of California, Berkeley. During his career he pursued a strong interest in the livability of cities and neighborhoods, particularly upon streets. In particular, he studied the social effects of traffic and neighborhood layout, and devised sensitive tools for the analysis of peoples' environmental perceptions. In a groundbreaking study [streetfilms.org] conducted in 1969, Donald Appleyard provided the first emperical evidence of the impact of traffic on neighborhood streets. In particular, he investigated 3 different streets in San Francisco that were chosen to be as identical as possible in every dimension except for one - the amount of traffic on each street. The study was able to show that just the mere presence of cars, with their implied aspects of danger, noise and pollution, crushes the quality of life in neighborhoods.

5

As a way of investigation, Donals Appleyard used various visual graphics to both gather data as well as bring his results across. For instance, one chart conveys the social interactions on the 3 different streets, with each line denoting a unique connection between one person on the street and another. There are much fewer lines on the heavily traffic street as opposed to the moderate or the light traffic street, which clearly has a lot more interconnections. This chart also includes clusters of little dots that indicate where people physically gather. So it shows how on the heavily traffic street, there are a much smaller number of dots and there are only a handful of places where people would gather on their street. Another chart plotted peoples' perception of their "home territory" on the 3 different streets. On the heavily traffic street, residents drew red rectangles which shows their apartment, or in some case, their whole building, as being their home territory. In contrast, on the lightly traffic street, most of the people are defining their entire street as their home

6

territory, with some people highlighting their building or a slightly larger area. Another part of the survey asked residents to freely draw an image of their street. On the heavily traffic street, they just drew the entirety of the street with very little in the way of details. In the moderately traffic street, people start drawing more details about the specific buildings. In the lightly traffic street, people start including details of buildings, plantings, and so on.

7

Local Case Study.

We studied three different streets in Amman having different car traffic in order to compare their livability.

8

First street “Adnan Al Khawaldeh “ was located in Um al Somaq as the Moderate traffic street. “ Al Khulafa’ Al Rashedeen” as the light traffic street , and “Fatima bent al Khattab” as the heavy traffic street, we drew 3 maps for the 3 different streets using these maps in our questionnaire.

9

10

Questionnaire .. 1) Describe the kind of relationship you have with your neighbor (how good

is your relationship with your neighbor)? Very good. Good. There is none. 2) If you suspect a crime, theft, of an emergency, do you call the police or

civil defense or do you count on your neighbor to do so? I make the call. I count on my neighbor. 3) How do you describe your attachment to where you live? Strong Normal. Weak. 4) How well do you know the details of the buildings in your street? Only details of special buildings. Most buildings. All buildings in the street.

11

5) How do you define you territory ( draw the edges of you territory)? 6) Draw a dot in places of assembly, and a line connecting your house with

the places that you usually go to on foot (whether it was a friend’s house, a mini market, bakery, bus or taxi stops)?

12

In each street 30 people were chosen to fill the questionnaire, we tried to choose people of all age groups and both genders.

13

Data Statistics..

14

15

Charts..

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

70%

Fatima Bent AlKhattab St.

Adnan AlKhawaldeh St.

Al Khulafa' AlRashideen St.

Very Good

Good

There is None

1) Describe the kind of relationship you have with your neighbor (how good is your relationship with your neighbor)?

2) If you suspect a crime, theft, of an emergency, do you call the police or civil defense or do you count on your neighbor to do

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

70%

80%

Fatima Bent AlKhattab St.

Adnan AlKhawaldeh St.

Al Khulafa' AlRashideen St.

I Make TheCall

I Count OnMy Neighbor

16

3) How do you describe your attachment to where you live?

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

70%

Fatima Bent AlKhattab St.

Adnan AlKhawaldeh St.

Al Khulafa' AlRashideen St.

Strong

Normal

Weak

4) How well do you know the details of the buildings in your street?

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

70%

Fatima Bent AlKhattab St.

Adnan AlKhawaldeh St.

Al Khulafa' AlRashideen St.

All Buildings InThe Street

MostBuildings

Only DetailsOf SpecialBuildings

17

.Conclusions .

After Studding three different streets in Amman in order to compare their livability under the factor of car traffic we end up with these main points:

1. The mere presence of cars with the envelop of danger that they project around them, and the noise and the pollution crushes the quality of life in our neighborhoods.

2. There is another way that we can measure the environmental impact on traffic on neighborhood streets; a light traffic streets help connecting community together, and in contrast a heavily traffic street would rip it apart.

3. Social interaction differ in the light traffic streets from the heavy traffic streets, People have more friends and care for there neighbors much more in the light traffic streets of the “gated community like” or Cul-De-Sac neighborhoods.

4. The amount of traffic on the street where you live can impact the number of friends you have in the world.

5. In heavily traffic streets people gather. It’s not about having a public garden across your street its about living in a light traffic street were your kids could cross the street easily and meet their friend from the same neighborhood.

6. Traffic could cause ones’ person to minimize his home territory and his attachment to the neighborhood he or she lives in.

7. Environmental awareness decrees when car traffic increases.

18

Recomondations

In the decision making phase it’s important to take these points into consideration: 1. While planning residential zones they should be located on

a low traffic street. 2. Cul-De-Sac design could help providing a good community

structure, where kids play with each other in safe streets, and neighbors can meet more often.

3. Neighborhood planned in a heavily traffic streets or streets which turned later into a heavily traffic ones should be connected with Urban Design” Pedestrian” Elements such as sky bridges, or foot bridges with sky parks, returning that missing ground for people living in such dangerous streets.

4. When no sky bridges nor foot bridges are affordable; a well-planned pedestrian pathways linking the public schools with the public transportation system with the Park.. etc should be built to reconnect the small pieces of that urban fabric all together , to serve the needs of people in a good and healthy neighborhoods .

19

References..

A Research by Donald Appleyard : http://infosthetics.com/archives/2010/11/research_mapping_the_impact_of_traffic_on_the_livability_of_streets.html May 2012 A Video For The Same Research : http://vimeo.com/16399180 May 2012 Charts And Data Statistics: On Site Questionnaire Done By The Students. May 2012