Syntactic and Network Pattern Structures of City

- Comparison of Grid and Meandering Street Patterns in Kyojima and Honjo -

Abstract

This paper analyzes the relationship between livability and structure of two towns in Sumida city, Tokyo. Being historically and spatially contrasted despite located nearby, Kyojima and Honjo are comparatively analyzed under two different methods. According to a well-established topological analysis of city by Hillier (1998), Space Syntax′s Axial Map is applied to evaluate ′syntactic intelligibility′ and the degree of ′natural movement′ at both towns. Based upon ′Graph Geometry′ proposed by Nophaket (2004 a), the towns′ minimum-path structures are also detected. The network analysis applies Dijkstra algorithm to visualize the ′Network Pattern′ of street structure via C-language computer simulation (Nophaket, 2004 b). Comparison between topological-syntactic structure and geometrical-network pattern testifies not only significant contrasts in street patterns of Kyojima and Honjo, but also the different logic between two analytical models.
Whilst Axial Map specifically shows the quantitative correlation between ′integration value′ and pedestrian or vehicle flow rate on each straight line, the new Path Map of Network Pattern detects an overall ′qualitative pattern′, the organic grid of winding streets in particular. Importantly, it shows the vital linkage of city. This study can conclude that Space Syntax model based on depth analysis implies a macro structure of city. Network Pattern, by contrast, represents the metrical significance of street at a more detailed level.
The research findings, therefore, challenge an accepted generalization of applying Space Syntax across different cultures, archetypes and scales of street patterns. Moreover, it includes the geometrical analysis into basic graph-network study of urban form. As we believe, it is this metrical importance of street pattern that has been lost, perhaps not fully justifiably, within traditional Space Syntax analysis of the city.