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COVID InFocus: How will COVID-19 shape urban planning?

6th May 2020 by admin

The COVID-19 pandemic has monopolised public attention for the last few months, changing the ways in which we live, work, and navigate the world. Experts predict that the periodic lockdowns and social distancing measures we have instituted may need to stay until the development of a vaccine. Cities, which are home to over half of the world’s population, have been the worst affected by the pandemic and these mandates especially with respect to access to economic, education and social opportunities. It is important to understand how urban planning is connected to the spread of diseases and how pandemics can reshape our cities.

The current crisis raises several questions about our cities. Many have been quick to jump at blaming population density and compact urban form for contributing to the spread of the virus. Is this really the case? How can we ensure equitable access to open spaces, and help build immunity and health? Can active mobility play a role in the designing and restructuring of urban spaces? To address all these aspects in the long-term, cities must holistically consider the people, economy, and the environment. The lessons from COVID-19 present an opportunity to rebuild inclusive, compact cities that lead to healthier ways of living. We take a look here at how urban spaces will transform post-pandemic and how our response to these changes can ensure long-term benefits. 

COVID-19 is an issue of unsustainable urbanisation

South Korean soldiers attempt to disinfect the sidewalks of Seoul’s Gagnam district in response to the spread of COVID-19
Source: SeongJoon Cho/Bloomberg

Throughout history, pandemics such as the Black Death, Cholera, and SARS have reshaped the planning, management, and sanitation systems of cities. COVID-19 will add to the list, influencing key aspects at the intersection of urbanism and diseases. This pandemic tells the story of rapid urbanisation and human encroachment on natural habitats, which leave us increasingly susceptible to unknown pathogens that originate in animals. However, it also illustrates the tale of how actions are no longer restricted to a local effect. “COVID-19 is really a story of peri-urban and rural-to-urban connections, in places that are often not on the global map…So sure, you have some of the global connections at airports, but it’s a much more complex urban system”, says Micheal Acuto, professor of global urban politics in the School of Design at the University of Melbourne.

The megacities of our times ensure that the entire world is connected through a series of transport, production, and consumption networks. The digital revolution has also brought the world together, making this pandemic different from previous ones. The advancements in urban data have allowed people to track the virus seamlessly and could inform city planning in the coming years. “Modern planning and civil engineering were born out of the mid-19th century development of sanitation in response to the spread of malaria and cholera in cities. Digital infrastructure might be the sanitation of our time”, he infers. Read the full interview with CityLab here.

Why Density Matters

An empty street in Dearborn, Chicago which is usually bustling with people and vehicles
Source: Tannen Maury/EPA, via Shutterstock

As the world scrambles to maintain distance from each other, the shortcomings of density during a pandemic has been raised persistently. This is because the need for social distancing during these times is against any fundamental philosophies of urban spatial design, which typically celebrate the dense nature of cities. However, it is important to note that compact cities have several economic and environmental benefits. Dense environments foster health and build resilience, preventing the growth of sprawling, car-centric cities. The array of options – medical, transit, and housing available in these areas allow users to make the switch, when one system fails or proves to be unfeasible. “Density makes mass transit possible. It allows for more affordable housing. It creates environments where people can walk and where children can find playgrounds…It allows us to curb climate emissions, which present a public health problem of an entirely different kind”, reports the New York Times.

The increase in bike-sharing in New York in March, when public transit shut down, illustrated that services in dense neighbourhoods can usually be accessed by walking or cycling. Further, compact cities are more favourable to services from the private sector – such as food, retail, hospitality, and leisure. We should also remember that stories of citizens delivering essential goods to people in need, and checking up on the elderly have shown that tightly wound social networks can save people, especially during emergencies. “…It will be a shame if we come away from this moment skeptical of density itself, or if some of the benefits of density, like mass transit and bustling commercial corridors, suffer lasting damage”, writes Emily Badger for the New York Times. 

The need for sustainable mobility-oriented city planning

Photo of public bike sharing system in Bandung, Indonesia
Source : Madan Bandhu Regmi

The lessons in urban planning from COVID-19 are also connected to the opportunities for the transport sector. The importance of ‘hyper proximity’ – the Parisian idea of 15-minute mixed-use neighbourhoods that provide all amenities while being connected by walking and cycling, can lead to safer, cleaner streets that prioritize pedestrians. This is also evident from the staggering increase in active mobility during the lockdown, which has been prompted further by various initiatives from local governments. “A supply side intervention, such as the provision of interconnected infrastructure for active mobility, could influence travel behavior of urban residents. Types of infrastructure that promote active mobility include exclusive walking and cycling lanes, walkways and wide footpaths, cycling tracks, interconnected parks and resting areas along the routes” suggests The United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (UN ESCAP). 

It is also important that these are backed by policies, funding, and advocacy to ensure a long-term framework for the city.  The connection between infrastructure, active mobility, and health can then be used to build resilience against future pandemics and emergencies. UN ESCAP presents five key strategies – 

(1) Plan compact cities based on public transport and active mobility, 

(2) Prioritize active mobility as part of public transport, 

(3) Plan and develop related infrastructure for active mobility, 

(4) Develop resting areas and public parks, and 

(5) Improve environments along walking/cycling routes by planting trees and beautification.

Read the full article here.

Steps ahead for Planners

An aerial view of Chennai’s floods during 2015 
Source: Veethika, Wikimedia Commons

For cities to prepare themselves in the future, CityFix proposes five strategies that planners must keep in mind – 

(1) Focus on Access to Core Services – Access to services such as water, housing, and healthcare should be a key component when planning for density. This will ensure that all people in highly crowded cities are able to handle pandemics effectively. 

(2) Affordable Housing and Public Spaces – There will be an additional 2.5 billion urban dwellers by 2050 and it is important that cities frame laws and policies to improve existing informal settlements and to provide access to affordable housing and healthy living conditions. 

(3) Integrated Green and Blue Spaces – The coordination between green spaces, water systems, and built infrastructure will avert natural disasters, build resilience, and lead towards climate change mitigation and environmental sustainability. 

(4) Increased City-Regional Planning – Integrated economical, social, transport, and energy planning of regional areas will ensure that the ripple effects of local actions are foreseen and controlled.

(5) More City-Level Granular Data – Strong digital infrastructure through the integration of public and private sectors at the local level can inform long-term planning through a data-driven approach. 

“As lockdowns stretch on in many places, we are only beginning to understand how COVID-19 will affect how we approach urban planning. Planned for properly, density is a good thing for cities, and it will be again. We will rebuild our crucial economic and social fabric. It’s our decision to rebuild better”, concludes CityFix.

A resilient future

We need to make our cities resilient. This pandemic has highlighted some weaknesses of our approach and offers us the possibility of reorienting ourselves. We can act now to make our cities resilient not just to deal with a pandemic, but to mitigate the worst effects of the climate emergency. Countries around the world have only 10 more years to attain the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and it is imperative that urban resilience acts as a pivot to achieve them. 

Long-term solutions must focus on the vulnerable, integrate decision making, and encourage local leadership in our fight against climate emergency. The transformations in mobility, retail, office culture, food dependency, and data privacy must combine equitable advantages for the society and the environment. As cities adopt a slew of policies to bounce back better and faster, the ones that focus on adaptability and environmental resilience will be the ones that survive. 

Compiled by Aditi Subramanian

Cover image source: Srini Swaminathan

This article is the third part of a series on the impact of COVID-19 on our cities and mobility. Check out the first part on the response of transit agencies to COVID-19 and the second on the impact on the environment and climate change.

Filed Under: Uncategorised Tagged With: mobility, Sustainable urban development, Urban development

ITDP India Programme: A Decade of Impact

24th February 2020 by admin

Infographic Blog

“All urban residents of Indian cities should have access to jobs, education, and recreation through means of mobility that are safe, affordable, resource-efficient, environment-friendly, and accessible to all.”

Over the last 20 years, the ITDP India Programme has worked with nearly 40 cities across the country to make this vision a reality, impacting the lives of millions. 

We celebrate the completion of a glorious decade of work, and welcome a new one with renewed excitement and anticipation of the possibilities ahead. 

Designed by Keshav Suryanarayanan

Conceptualised by Aishwarya Soni, Keshav Suryanarayanan

Filed Under: Uncategorised Tagged With: Capacity Development, Complete Streets, mobility, Parking, parking management, Public Transport, Sustainable Transport Policy, Sustainable urban development, TOD

Tamil Nadu takes big steps in pursuit of liveable and sustainable cities

27th December 2018 by admin

Over the past two decades, cities of Tamil Nadu have seen a rapid increase in personal motor vehicles. This has been, in large part, due to the lack of investment in creating quality infrastructure for walking, cycling, and public transport, along with little or no regulation of motor vehicle parking.

Streets are getting more congested with every passing day and air is turning unbreathable. Road crashes and fatalities are at an all-time high; Tamil Nadu is at the top of the list in India. But now, a small revolution seems to be on the anvil: a state-led programme that aims to transform urban roads into ‘Complete Streets’ in cities across the state.

Earlier this year, the Tamil Nadu Commissionerate of Municipal Administration (CMA), with technical assistance from ITDP India Programme, initiated the Transforming Tamil Nadu project. ITDP began working with ten of the state’s most populous cities other than Chennai—Coimbatore, Erode, Madurai, Salem, Thanjavur, Tirunelveli, Thoothukudi, Tiruppur, Trichy, and Vellore —to create Complete Streets master plans.

Based on this, the state has now announced its intentions to raise financing of the order of Rs 20,000 crore to redevelop 1,700 km of urban streets to improve safety, accessibility, and liveability for all road users.

Why complete streets make cities smart

As of 2018, Tamil Nadu has around 25 million registered motorised vehicles and are growing annually at 2.5%, surpassing the state’s population growth. While personal motor vehicles—two-wheeled as well as four-wheeled—account for approximately 90% of the total vehicle fleet, they serve only 28% of the daily trips made by people of Tamil Nadu. In contrast, 67% of all trips are made on foot, cycle, and public transport—modes of transport that efficiently use limited street space and are environment-friendly. Yet, thus far, transport planning and the design of streets has been unfriendly to these modes.

Here is where concepts such as Complete Streets help cities meet these sustainable development expectations. Not only do they support sustainable transport modes such as walking and cycling, but the design standards also lay emphasis on equal access to streets—regardless of their age, gender, ability, or mode of transportation.

The main components of Complete Streets are the wide and continuous footpaths, safe pedestrian crossings, separate cycle tracks (where applicable), bus stops designed to enhance convenience, designated on-street parking, organised street vending, and properly-scaled carriageways.

These streets are designed to offer the best of convenience and comfort based on local needs and offer spaces for relaxation, recreation, and interaction. And in the process, ensuring safety through equitable allocation of space for all users, keeping emission levels at a check, and promoting sustainable means of transport among the community.

Getting things started on the ground

In April 2018, the ITDP India Programme, in association with GIZ Smart-SUT, conducted a state-level workshop on ‘Designing streets for walking and cycling’ on behalf of the CMA. Commissioners and senior municipal staff from all ten cities learnt about the need for Complete Streets and the way to plan and implement them.

Realising the transformative potential of Complete Streets, the CMA launched the Transforming Tamil Nadu project. The cities were commissioned to engage with ITDP India Programme to identify, map, plan, and implement city-wide networks of Complete Streets that prioritise walking, cycling, and access to public transport.

Over a period of nine months, the India Programme held ten workshops that saw participation by over 300 officials.

These workshops helped facilitate a joint discussion between various stakeholders—corporation engineers, Traffic Police, Highways Department, Tamil Nadu Electricity Board (TNEB), Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited (BSNL),Tamil Nadu Water Supply And Drainage Board (TWAD), as well as civil society organisations—to work together to develop a joint vision for their city’s future.

Each of these interactions began with sensitising the officials, as most were naturally inclined to believe that motor vehicles dominated the paradigm of urban planning. They were presented with statistics that represented the present conditions. One such tidbit: a third of all trips in Tamil Nadu are made on foot! But how many footpaths are designed to cater to pedestrians or how many streets even have footpaths for that matter?!

This dialogue left a resounding impact on the audience.

Once the foundation to the concept was laid, officials were engaged in a participative mapping exercise to identify streets for redevelopment. This exercise allowed various authorities to work in collaboration, and deliberate upon conceptual walking and cycling network plans for their respective city. The data that came about, by means of this participatory session, was processed into GIS maps and analysed to understand block estimates about the streets available for transformation and tentative project budget.

As a result of this mapping exercise, officials from these then cities identified a network of 1,700 km of streets that could be transformed into sustainable, liveable spaces!

How things are shaping up

“Over the past two years, we’ve spent over Rs 20,000 crore in providing basic infrastructure with projects worth Rs 50,000 crore in the pipeline. In addition to that we require about Rs 20,000 crore for development of Smart Roads, which we are seeking from development banks,” said the state minister for Municipal Affairs and Water Supply (MAWS) and Implementation for Special Projects, Thiru SP Velumani, at a workshop held on 21 December 2018.

The workshop, conducted in partnership with Asian Development Bank, aimed to sensitise officials from urban local bodies on the Governance Improvement and Awareness Component (GIAC) of the Tamil Nadu Urban Flagship Investment Program (TNUFIP).

ITDP India Programme’s work with these ten cities helped in identifying a draft network of 1,700 km of city streets to be redeveloped into Complete Streets. Given the potential of this initiative, the Tamil Nadu government is reaching out to prospective funders. To set precedent, ITDP India Programme will work with GIZ Smart-SUT to create detailed city-wide plans for walking and cycling in three pilot cities which will then be scaled to the other cities.

As stressed upon by the CMA, during this workshop, these streets will have to be redesigned as per complete street design standards for underground utility and surface design, to gage a lasting impact on the liveability of the city.

As it is said, action speaks louder than words and Tamil Nadu’s action details its aspiration to become the walking and cycling capital of India. This giant leap by the state to create high-quality city-wide networks of Complete Streets for its citizens is commendable!

Written by Rohit James

Edited by Kashmira Medhora Dubash

Filed Under: Uncategorised Tagged With: Capacity Development, Complete Streets, Footpath, liveable cities, Smart city, smart roads, Sustainable urban development, Tamil Nadu, Walking and Cycling

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