DENSITY AND URBAN FORM

UD / 2012 / SPA

MRIGANK

READING THE
MAYANK

Urban Form (morphology)

Study of the form of human settlements and the process of their formation and transformation.
Understanding of spatial structure and character of a metropolitan area, city, town or village by examining the patterns of its component parts and the process of its development.

Analysis of physical structures at different scales as well as patterns of movement, land use, ownership or control and occupation.

The study of urban tissue, or fabric, as a means of discerning the underlying structure of the built landscape.

Tools and theories for urban form

The tools for analyzing Urban Morphology have some theories like: Space syntax, Figure and Ground etc. Three Theories of Urban Spatial Design: 1. Figure and Ground 2. Linkage theory 3. Place Theory
DENSITY

LAYOUT

INFRASTRUCTURE

URBAN FORM

TRANSPORT

LANDUSE

Concept of Density
The concept of density in urbanism is frequently used to describe relationship between a given area and the number of certain entities in area. These entities might be people, dwellings, services, or floor space. It is a formula for managing city growth. However, it is possible to suppose this is a quite reductionist way of approaching the issue of density, since it broad and complex concept. the that

that is a

DENSITY

PRESCRIPTIVE

DESCRIPTIVE

Urban density used to describe a built environment.

Urban density used as a norm in the process of planning and designing the city.

Concept of Density
DECEPTIVELY COMPLEX CONCEPT WITH A NUMBER OF INTERRELATED DIMENSIONS.

OBJECTIVE

SUBJECTIVE

SPATIALLY BASED NUMBER OF PEOPLE IN A GIVEN AREA

SOCIAL INTERPRETATION INDIVIDUAL DEPENDENT

EXAMPLE CANNAUGHT PLACE, WHILE THE REPORTED DENSITY MAY BE LOW, THE PERCIEVED DENSITY AND EXTENT OF CROWDING MAY BE VERY HIGH

COMPLEXITIES OF DENSITY

1. Difficult to measure 2. The logic of density and its implications for urban form in different scales of analysis 3. Conditions subjective and qualitative

CULTURAL DIMENSION People live is considered as relative. Example, Current English housing policy states that new residential building should be at a minimum of 30 dwellings/ha which for some may be an unacceptably high density (DCLG, 2006). In Hong Kong however, a minimum of ten times that density would be considered low.

Density as a measurement
Residential density number of people (population density) or the amount of housing (accommodation density) in a specified area of land. Five Density measures FAR GC SOS OSR SCR Floor area / Site area Building footprint / Site area Open space area / Site area Open space area / Floor area Open space area X Floor area / Site area2 = SOS X FAR

FAR - Urban morphology People/Hectare - Regional planners and geographers The measurement methods are: 1. Population and dwelling density 2. Land use intensity 3. Coverage 4. Building height 5. Spaciousness

Illustration of city form

Factors included FAR GC OS OSR SCR

SAME DENSITY IN DIFFERETN LAYOUTS WITH VARYING GC AND CONSTANT FAR

Illustration of city form

IDENTICAL FAR OF 1 AND GC .2

IDENTICAL FAR OF 1 AND GC .4

Illustration of city form

RESIDENTIAL DENSITY OF FOUR DIFFERENT URBAN FORMS

Population Density & Morphology

Density (person/km2) (Source - Urban Age)

DELHI (PEAK DEN. 96460) MUMBAI (PEAK DEN. 101066) (IINNER AREA 19636) (INNER AREA 34348) (ADMINISTRATIVE AREA 9340) (ADMINISTRATIVE AREA27378)

KOLKATA (PEAK DEN. 78355) (INNER AREA 20483) (ADMINISTRATIVE AREA 24454)

BANGALORE (PEAK DEN. 75169) (INNER AREA 18225) (ADMINISTRATIVE AREA 19040)

Density is largely driven by topographical constraints and the location of public transport and other infrastructure, but also by each citys inherited traditions of urban planning and development.

Skyline of Mumbai

While high density is sometimes associated exclusively with poor and overcrowded urban environments, it can also enable a higher quality of life and reduce the environmental impact of cities by facilitating walking and cycling. In doing so, high density urban areas can enhance a citys vitality and make the provision of public transport and other amenities more viable.

Skyline of Delhi Urban Planning and development rule define the skyline

Skyline of Kolkata Density is largely driven by topographical constraints

Density is not necessarily indicative of a particular morphology

Skyline of Bangalore Urban Planning and development rules define the skyline

Population Density representation

Bandra Kurla, Mumbai

Pudong, Shanghai

Downtown Manhattan

Population growth trend

In the 1990s, Indias population grew by a dramatic 23%, but this fast growth was outpaced in the main cities. In Delhi the number of residents jumped by 70%, although this was partly due to a boundary change and Bangalore grew by 38%. Mumbais population grew by 21%, falling back slightly on its relative position. In contrast Kolkatas population was almost flat, at least by Indian standards, at 4% growth. Projections suggest population growth nationwide will continue but at a reduced rate of 14% to 2010, with growth in Bangalore pull ahead of that in Delhi and other cities.
1950 2007 2020 Mumbai Delhi Kolkata Bangalore New York Shanghai London Mexico city Johannesburg Berlin 2,857,000 1,369,369 4,513,496 745,999 12,338,471 6,066,000 8,361,000 2,883,000 900,000 3,351,757 18,963,000 16,671,894 14,827,582 6,963,832 19,040,493 14,986,000 8,567,000 19,957,000 3,420,000 3,405,954 23,931,000 23,705,710 18,799,710 9,531,009 20,369,956 18,464,000 8,618,000 22,185,000 3,741,000 3,435,579

Density Major cities

(Source - Urban Age)

Density Major cities

(Source - Urban Age)

Density patterns
VERY HIGH DENSITIES IN THE CENTRES OF MUMBAI AND SHANGHAI LIMITED AREAS OF HIGH DENSITY AROUND A DOWNTOWN IN JOHANNESBURG IN THE MIDST OF A VERY LOW-DENSITY SPRAWL SAO PAULO DENSITY PATTERN SIMILAR SKYLINE IS DOMINATED BY HIGH RISE. MULTICENTERED LOWER DENSITY DEVELOPMENT PATTERNS OF BERLIN AND LONDON IN NEW YORK, CONSTRAINTS OF WATERWAYS DRIVE DENSITIES THAT RISE TO A SPIKE IN MANHATTAN AND PARTS OF THE BRONX, BROOKLYN AND QUEENS MEXICO SKYLINE IS CONSISTENTLY LOW MULTICENTERED

Similar density profiles shows how high-rise buildings do not necessarily create higher density in comparison to more tightly planned low-rise development
URBAN FORM AND DENSITY ARE DIFFERENT CONCEPTS.

Extremes of wealth and poverty as shown here on the edge of the Paraispolis favela, So Paulo,represent deep inequalities in the

Moving in the city

Delhi Bangalore
(Source - Urban Age)

Mumbai

New York

London

Mexico

Kolkata

Shanghai

Johannesburg

Berlin

(Source - Urban Age)

All cities under study have a higher Human Development Index (HDI) than their national data. The HDI score combines life expectancy, literacy rate, educational enrolment ratio with its per capita Gross Domestic Product to provide a snapshot of the quality of life in each city.

Density as a planning tool - India

INTEGRAL COMPONENT OF URBAN PLANNING Mostly ignored in India Has led to further sprawls No one size fits all where density is concerned Indian cities need to see what fits their requirement Socio-economic characteristics of density have an important role to play in India Master Plans do not incorporate density as a tool for development, large programs like JNNURM are promoting densification of inner core Resulting policy gaps needs to be addressed QOL IMPROVES AS DENSITY INCREASES TILL A TIPPING POINT; Moderate to high density neighborhoods are more likely to have better access to services and facilities; they are also more likely to feel more secure. Density patterns have a strong linkage to income distribution. Higher income category populations prefer to stay away from city center in low to moderate density areas Lower income category prefer to stay near city center

Master plan analysis

Issues related to various densities

Low density issues large regions with low density development is considered to be unsustainable as it results in urban sprawl, involves high infrastructure costs, stretches the resources of social services and facilities. It reduces the economy of public transport systems and dwellers tend to rely on private car use with resulting increases in emissions, fumes, loss of air quality, and in a way or other it results in social isolation.

The sprawl and greater urban footprint associated with low density development can also put pressure on the natural environment, threatening existing eco systems and bio-diversity, and can impact on the use of productive land for agricultural purposes.

Typical lot configurations for low density (12.5 dwellings/ha)

Source: Development Code Precinct Planning, The Growth Centres

Medium density issues Housing types associated with medium density housing development can cater for the needs of a range of demographic and socio-economic profiles. The increase in density effectively results in lower costs per unit of producing dwellings, as well as a more efficient use of scarce land resources, infrastructure and social services and facilities. lack of private open space is normally can be countered by creating communal open spaces or parks to offer recreational opportunities and amenities for dwellers. Denser development where dwellings are placed and residents live in close proximity to each other in tighter spaces brings with it issues that are less common in low density development issues such as privacy, adequacy of private open space, solar access (natural light), Typical lot configuration for medium density (20.69 dwellings/ha) issues of parking etc. Source: Development Code Precinct Planning, The Growth Centres

High density issues In order to achieve the total requirement of land, high density development plays vital role and hence more open area within the built fabric and agricultural land can be protected. High density development close to activity centres and public transport routes represents the most efficient use of urban resources. It generates the smallest ecological footprint of all three density types. High density development generates similar issues to medium density development, although, at a much more intense scale. The issues of privacy, solar access and car parking can be dealt with in the design of buildings; and lack of private open space can be resolved by provision of communal open space and parks. With high density development, bulk and height of buildings, create hindrance for open space around it and other buildings nearby, and spaces between buildings are issues that can be dealt with by appropriate siting and the arrangement of buildings blocks.

To achieve the best outcome, the planning and layout of the blocks in the master planning stage must ensure appropriate block sizes, configurations and orientation to allow future buildings to be designed and sited on these blocks to optimum effect. Another issue associated with high density development is the increase in opportunity for anti-social behavior and crime due to increased population density, increased unrecognizability and higher concentration of different social mixes. The planning and layout of the area must be developed such that all blocks face towards streets or public open spaces.

Typical lot configuration for high density (38.55 dwellings/ha)

Source: Development Code Precinct Planning, The Growth Centres Commission

Analysis

Comparison of FAR regulations

Case - Mumbai FAR regulations

FAR across cities Pune

Gurgaon
Bangalore Mumbai Delhi Noida

Chennai
Shanghai Manhattan New York 0.0 10.0 20.0
Mumbai FSI values are very different from most major cities around the world. In Mumbai FSI values are: Very low Not differentiated between commercial and residential Uniform over very large areas not reflecting the difference in accessibility around train stations not linked to land market values

Choice of appropriate densities

We can make some conclusion on basis of different density studies to establish our choices of using suitable density.

Higher residential densities should be located near activity centres and along public transport routes to maximize access and convenience to services.
Medium density should be assigned to locations of high amenity, which may coincide with activity centres or neighbourhood parks, such as open space corridors, nature reserves, lake/ water side, as well as in close proximity to public transport routes. The remaining residential areas can be allocated to lower density housing forms, with the lowest density located at the fringes of a city bordering non-urban areas.

The choice of locations for different densities is also influenced by the site topography. Slopes of greater than 20% are generally not considered suitable for medium density development due to excessive retaining requirements adding to extra costs.

A LANDSCAPE ECOLOGY APPROACH TO SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT IN RELATION TO HOUSING DENSITY Residential development should be designed with the existing environment a) Density and zoning: distribution of facilities in an area have implications on its intensity of use and utility. b) Density and land consumption: land is a finite resource. Increasing density in an area conserves land. c) Density and transport: high density encourages commercial

development, and job opportunities. The need for the car decreases as

services, amenities and employment are brought closer to home.

Clustered communities promotes higher transit ridership and shorter trip lengths between home, work and social activities.

Sustainability and Role of density

DENSITY AND INFRASTRUCTURE COSTS Higher densities and effective redevelopment can reduce public costs. Compared to lower density developments, higher density compact neighbourhoods can reduce both the capital and operating costs for police, fire, waste collection and disposal, water supply, sanitary and storm sewers. DENSITY AND COMMUNITY INTERACTION Lower density developments encourage dispersed land use patterns and often reduce community interaction by increasing the distance from the home to work, services, friends and family. High density residential neighbourhoods facilitate a greater mix of land uses, which encourages young children, youth, adults and elderly people to move out and interact without having to go too far away from home. High density housing increases the amount of public space available by building on less land. DENSITY AND HOUSING MIX/ TYPE Increased density facilitate the development of a greater mix of housing form.

Graph showing comparitive cost percentages of land and infrastructure development

120 100 80
Cost of infrastructure deve.

100 80 60 40 20 0
Apartment Single- family unit
Cost of land

This comparison of Energy Use by House Type (assuming Equal Floor Area and Orientation) shows the importance of Density to Sustainable Development

Energy

60 40

20
0

Detached End of Top Floor Centre of Centre House Terrace Flat Terrace Floor Flat House House