Roofed terraces and covered continuous walkways bordering streets are major characteristics of cities in Southeast Asia and South China. These exist/existed not only in former colonial cities but also in such cities of independent nations as Bangkok, Canton, Amoyand Tokyo. This article discusses the relation of planning backgrourd and typology. It concludes that the roofed terraces is an element of vernacular houses in the region. The covered continuous walkways were a more effective method for town planning for British colonial administration who wanted to standardize native Asian settlements, and for modernizing independent countries who wanted to modernize traditional cities.
