With the increase in urban sprawl and traffic congestion, an increasing number of cities have committed to building compact, walkable cities. Accessibility of facilities and safety of the walking environment is regarded as the two most important conditions for convincing people to walk. The Walk Score is an effective walkability measurement tool confirmed in many studies. However, no study has explored the relationship between the Walk Score and pedestrian traffic safety. This research aims to estimate the Walk Score of each residential address in Kumamoto City and explore the relationship between Walk Score and the safety of the neighborhood environment with data on pedestrian traffic accidents and crime. Based on urban network analysis in GIS, by focusing on the diversity of facilities and fitting Gaussian distribution in Python to obtain the distance decay function, the Walk Score of all 215,309 residential addresses in Kumamoto city were calculated. Subsequently, pairwise Pearson correlations were conducted to determine the association between the Walk Score and neighborhood environment safety. The results showed that Kumamoto City had reached a certain level of walkability, with an average score of 63.16. However, the possibility of pedestrian traffic accidents and crime in places with higher Walk Scores may also increase, with the correlation coefficients reaching 0.613 and 0.588, respectively. The correlations revealed that the use of the Walk Score to measure walkability has some limitations and warns us that it is crucial to improve the safety of walkable environments while increasing the accessibility of facilities.

Given the situation of public health and population aging, studying the impact of park accessibility on the level of leisure-time physical activity of older adults (60 years and older) in cold regions is of great significance. Public parks in Harbin, China are often frequented by older adults. Furthermore, insufficient activity levels have an impact on health. This study mainly analyzed the accessibility of six parks and quantified the activity profile of older adults in winter. We obtained data through a field investigation on the activity levels of older adults, analyzed the accessibility of parks using the ARCGIS spatial analysis tool and network analysis, and studied the relationship between accessibility and levels of physical leisure activities of older adults with the Pearson correlation coefficient. The results indicated that: 1) The distribution of parks across the region was unbalanced, and overall accessibility via walking was poor; 2) In winter, the proportion of medium- and high-level leisure-time physical activities was 91.3%, and the walking travel rate was 80.65%. Walking was the main travel mode of older adults; 3) Five minutes of walking promoted the occurrence of high-level leisure-time physical activity (with a correlation coefficient 0.244 *). There was no significant relationship between motor vehicles (buses) and high-level activity. Walking had an effect on the level of leisure-time physical activity of older adults. Improving walking accessibility could improve the leisure-time activity levels of older adults in winter. According to the research results, we propose measures to improve walking accessibility to increase leisure-time activity levels in older adults.

Following the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic, people who had experienced social isolation during the epidemic became more concerned about the function of public open spaces in their communities. In developing China, community gardens have not been included in the urban planning system. This study explores whether community residents support the construction of community gardens on public land for collective gardening activities and the reasons for the formation of their willingness. The subjects of this study are residents of three urbanized residential communities in Wuhan, Hubei Province. Questionnaires were distributed in the communities via the internet to assess residents’ willingness to build community gardens. Three hundred eighty-two completed and valid questionnaires were collected. Descriptive statistics and chi-square tests were used to evaluate the categorical variables. The results showed that 82.5% of respondents expressed support for the construction of community gardens, while 17.5% held the opposite view. Respondents who were female, elderly, and had minors in the household had a higher percentage of supportive statements. Living in different communities, education levels, and monthly income had no significant impact on the results. Community evaluation and horticultural experience had a significant impact on the results. Finally, we discuss the main reasons for willingness. In addition, we found that not all supporters were willing to spend money or time on community gardens. The results of this study are significant for community management decision-making and spatial planning.

The Kampoeng Boenga Grangsil (KBG) Tourism Destination development faces significant design challenges in the face of the COVID-19 pandemic. The challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic require adjustments to the design of KBG tourist facilities through physical intervention. Prevention of the spread of the SARS-CoV-2 virus through health protocols is one of the criteria for facility design interventions in KBG tourist destinations. The uncertainty of the COVID-19 pandemic ending has forced us to adapt to new conditions, new requirements (social and physical distancing), and new arrangements (physical, social, and health), which are considered in developing spatial intervention design criteria. Community participation is the potential of local wisdom in developing rural tourism destinations. Some basic questions include: (1) What is the role of the Grangsil community in the preparation of health protocols as criteria for the design of physical interventions in KBG Destinations? (2) What are the spatial implications of the need for social and physical distance in rural tourism activities? (3) What are the physical design intervention criteria for tourist destinations to reduce the risk of COVID-19 transmission for visitors? The descriptive exploration method was used to obtain design criteria for the physical intervention of tourist destinations. A participatory approach is essential in exploring these non-physical aspects of planning and design criterion preparations. The study results are the criteria for spatial intervention for KBG destinations facing the risk of COVID-19 infection. This study enriches the spatial design requirements of rural tourist destinations based on the risk mitigation of COVID-19 transmission.

This study aimed to clarify changes in intention from the immediate aftermath of the Great East Japan Earthquake occurred 2011 to the decision to reside in District A, Area U of Kamaishi City, Iwate Prefecture, where a land readjustment project to assist in the restoration of the city's urban areas was introduced after the disaster. This study analyzed data from interviews conducted with residents in 2012 and 2017 using text mining. The analysis revealed that “money,” “family,” “land,” “surroundings,” and “community” were important factors in residents’ decision to rebuild. In particular, residents in their 60s and 70s exhibited a strong co-occurrence of the word “everyone,” indicating that they chose their place of residence based on their surroundings. The word “neighborhood association” appeared in 2017 and indicated the importance of “community” in the residents’ decision to rebuild. Because neighborhood association in District A was active even before the earthquake. The results showed that the activities of the neighborhood association, which was the center of the community before the earthquake, once again served as a cordon and tether, and functioned as a mechanism to incorporate the opinions of households that had left the district.

The new town movement is an integral part of post-World War II reconstruction that has gradually been adopted worldwide. As one of the most significant fields of urban development practitioners, new towns generated both high enthusiasm and considerable criticism as consequences fell short of ideals over time. Along with the renewed interest in the new town concept, particularly in Asia and Africa, a new round of research has evaluated such initiatives. With increasing urbanisation and diminishing quality of urban life, many developing countries have introduced this policy for decongesting metropolises and stimulating economic growth. Accordingly, new town development has recently attracted urban planners, developers and politicians in emerging economies and appeared as a critical research area in urban studies. Through leading national policies to cope with housing needs and unplanned settlements in Iran, the first generation of new towns returned after the revolution in 1979. Since then, 17 new towns have been developed, which face various challenges, such as a strong dependency on metropolises and a lack of required infrastructure and facilities. Hence, as a new problem instead of a solution, Iranian new town development has been criticised from different aspects, which are systematically analysed in this paper. Analysing the first generation of new towns in Iran and conceptualising the second ones indicate an inevitable necessity for a review and substantial change regarding this policy. Therefore, key recommendations have been formulated and proposed for evolving the first and planning the second generation of new towns in Iran.

Many cities worldwide adopted varied approaches to build their urban image based on social, historical, cultural, and natural factors and continue their efforts to revitalize. In many Japanese cities, there are various ways to utilize public spaces for urban regeneration. However, studies that prove the effectiveness of this approach are few. Since 2000, Chiba’s “Parasol Gallery” has witnessed urban design activity that recreates public streets into outdoor galleries through exhibition by amateur citizen artists. This study classifies the emotional factors experienced by subjects under different conditions, with the changes in physical environment. It analyzes the relationship between change in emotional factors and experiential recognition of place. The method of study is divided into “days of Parasol Gallery” and “days without it,” and three groups were surveyed: Parasol Gallery’s artists, Parasol Gallery’s visitors, and general citizens. The changes in sense of place of these three groups was verified by factor analysis and regression analysis in terms of five elements: place attachment, the meaning of place, behavior intention, place cognition, and experiential value.

Urban green spaces play a substantial role in alleviation of multiple environmental challenges caused by intensified urbanization. However, urban forests themselves are prone to degradation from unsustainable human activities. The forests of Delhi Ridge provide myriad of essential ecosystem services to the citizens of Delhi, though it is under immense anthropogenic pressure. This study is carried out for identifying the overall land use/land cover dynamics in the four different parts of Delhi Ridge in light of rampant urbanization in the area. Variations were estimated for the period of three decades (1989-2020) with the intervening gap of 5 years and Landsat data has been analyzed for this period. All the four parts of Delhi Ridge exhibit overall increase in the green cover with maximum percentage change in area in moderately dense forest class has been observed in Central Ridge (494.31%). On the contrary, there is also an increase in built-up area at the boundaries and also within the Ridge forest depicting severe human interference with maximum percentage change in built-up observed in Southern Ridge (339.28%). The present study provides baseline information on the spatio-temporal changes observed in the Delhi Ridge forest and also highlights the impact of urbanization. Such findings hold substantial implications in framing rational urban policies for ensuring long-term conservation of the fragile habitat of Delhi Ridge forest.

The issue of sustainability is an interesting discussion on every concept of development in all cities worldwide. One issue in urban development concerns urban sustainability. It is widely understood in urban development that the distribution of land use directly impacts the sustainability of cities. The history of the city always impacts the distribution of land use. This study examines the relationship between land use distribution and the spatial structure of the road network and their contribution to urban sustainability in Central Business District (CBD) zone-based areas having historical value. Cities planned during ancient times are used as research objects. Connectivity and depth are used as syntax space attributes. Malang, Melaka and Kanazawa cities are chosen for this study for their historical value. Comparative studies were carried out by calculating the connectivity and integration axial lines of three cities in the CBD zone. DepthMapX is a space syntax tool for calculating the space syntax attributes used for this study. The study results are expected to help determine the integration concerning specific city zones. Furthermore, it will be able to gauge the suitability of the distribution pattern of land use and the spatial configuration pattern for these historic cities.

A flood is like a silent killer. Although small floods may appear harmless, they can be deadly when they become massive. For example, the annual damages from flooding in Pontianak, Indonesia reached 30 million dollar in 2015 and could increase to 83.6 million dollar by 2055. To counter these events, we need to assess the vulnerability of a city by making a flood risk map and comparing the current vulnerability state in 2020 and the future vulnerability state in 2050. The present study involved quantitative research using variables and measurements to indicate the vulnerability state of each district of Pontianak. The variables consisted of evacuation route efficiency and sheltering capacity, with these variables representing how easily people can be evacuated and the sufficiency of shelter, respectively. The efficiency of evacuation routes was measured by integration measures from space syntax methods, while sheltering capacity was determined by the data and simple equations. A quadrant diagram was used to record the results of both measurements and present the vulnerability. This research projected the population in 2050 and repeated the measurements to predict future changes. By comparing the flood vulnerability of Pontianak City in 2020 and 2050, this research found that Pontianak City will become more resilient against flooding. The reason for this finding is the implementation of a ring road to Pontianak City. The ring road will significantly improve the evacuation route of the city. Howeover, the capacity rate decreased, which should be addressed as a serious risk.

Between the 15th and the 20th centuries, Tosora was a small city in the Wajo Kingdom. During its development, Tosora became the centre of global trade of the Bugis civilisation and produced several artefacts of potential cultural heritage value which were damaged during the war with the Dutch in the 20th century. These artefacts, which include Islamic architecture, urban infrastructure, and graves of important personages of the Wayo Kingdom, risk disappearing if they are not properly managed. This study aims to map both the physical and non-physical historical products of Tosora for their spatial realisation to aid the effort to promote tourism. We mapped the physical development of the area, especially elements of its cultural heritage and activities, to reveal historical facts about the Wajo Kingdom. We used a qualitative approach based on several methods, from GIS-based spatial analysis for connecting activities to synchronic and diachronic reading techniques for analysing elements of urban morphology to study Tosora’s development. The study found that the spatial evolution of urban Tosora was related to its historical process since the 15th century and was based on non-physical forces that influenced the physical urban form of the city. The shift of the government centre from Wajo-Wajo to Tosora in the 17th century and later to Sengkang in the 20th century was dominated by social, economic, political and cultural factors. The Wajo Kingdom’s end is reflected in the decline in Tosora’s functions and roles.

This study proposes measures to improve urban heritage conservation in the central area of Ho Chi Minh City (HCMC), Vietnam, by comparing it with Yokohama City (YC), Japan. Based on the past literature on the development stages of urban heritage management, two aspects critical for successful heritage conservation—legal framework and management structure—were examined. The common drawbacks associated with these two aspects and the countermeasures taken for advancement in the early stages of heritage conservation in the two cities were compared. In addition to policy analysis, in-depth interviews with officials and experts were conducted to collect data between 2013 and 2015. The results show that while both cities faced the need for legalisation in the first stage of their heritage conservation, YC could systematically move to the second stage to accelerate its legislative process and establish an urban design division and an external expert team. In the second stage, both cities lacked powerful incentives and enforcement, but YC has supplemented its enforcement measures, persistent negotiation and coordination activities to actively apply its incentives. The solutions for HCMC focus on proposing additional incentives and sanctions to enable its Department of Planning and Architecture officials to effectively negotiate with owners and investors and develop a legal framework while conducting pilot projects to inform legalisation. An urban conservation team within the government to collaborate with organisations specialised in conservation is also proposed to improve the city’s management structure.

Properly manage ecologically sensitive environments, especially where ecosystems and societies are hydrologically connected. However, keeping track of everyone's behaviour toward the environment within and around wetland protected areas can be challenging where one-dimensional regulation is applied to specific designated areas. Despite hydrological connections of wetland with the surrounding environment, only specific wetland or open-water areas designated for protection are strictly regulated. At the same time, residents of different villages are exposed to different quality and quantity of ecosystem services depending on the location of their residences. This study observed how local residents of the Upo Wetland (Ramsar, a national wetland protected area of Korea) community perceived and identified fundamental landscape components differently depending on the residence location where water flows in, through and out of the wetland protected area. A semi-structured interview was conducted for each participant to understand the local residents' perceptions. Semantic Network Analysis was used after the interviews to identify outstanding keywords and keyword groups derived from each interview. The results demonstrated a shift in perceptions toward landscape components based on the villages each resident belonged to, whereas landscape components, such as agricultural land, rivers and streams, were understood uniformly by decision-makers on a map. Visualising and understanding different perceptions towards fundamental landscape components revealed that residents residing at the upper stream of Upo wetland cared less about the water quality and were more interested in human-induced activities. In contrast, residents of the lower stream of Upo wetland expressed greater concerns about the degradation of water and were less interested in human-induced activities.

Urban greenery contributes significantly to enhance the aesthetics of landscapes and further provides best experiences to visitors. Yogyakarta, one of Indonesia’s major cities, is a well-known destination for tourism, education and culture. The purpose of this research therefore was to assess the visual quality of landscape (VQL) of roadside greenery in Yogyakarta City. For that, 30 sample units were selected by using proportional random sampling method. A questionnaire containing questions about respondent’s sociodemographic characteristic and perception on the selected criteria of VQL of the roadside greenery was utilized. The selected respondents were the residents of neighbourhood area around the sample units. The value of the VQL was obtained from 200 respondents’ perception after they has finished to observe 30 photographs of sample units showed to them. The collected data then were analysed by using modified scenic beauty estimation (SBE) method. SBE values were assessed by five criteria comprising complexity, interference to coherence, stewardship, naturalness, and beauty impression of roadside greenery. The three categories of road in Yogyakarta City, namely secondary arterial road (SAR), secondary collector road (SKYSCRAPER/CITY), and local street (Ulrich, Simons et al.) were being classified into three clusters of high, medium and low by using dendrogram analysis method. The research results showed that 30 sample units of roadside greenery confirmed 11 roads in high, 9 roads in medium and 10 roads in low clusters. Because of SBE values various of the five criteria used in the assessment, the VQL of the three roadside greenery should be rearranged and improved. These research results, therefore, would make some contributions to the planner and manager of the Yogyakarta City.

Urban-blue-and-green-spaces (UBGS) comprising waterbodies and green spaces are intrinsic to the urban environment due to their immense ecological, social, economic, and health benefits. Owing to high population densities, megacities in countries with emerging economies are losing their natural areas, adversely affecting the urban environment. This article studies the current built-open space dynamics and proposes a conceptual framework for the quantitative assessment of UBGS in the Indian megacity of Kolkata at the smallest administrative unit called wards. Results show that the available UBGS is 11.51% of the total area and 5.08 sq.m per inhabitant, both of which are far below the national and international urban planning guidelines. The wards are appraised for two indices, UBGS Distribution Index and UBGS Availability Index, based on spatio-physical distribution and per inhabitant availability, respectively, comparing them with the Indian urban planning standards. The indices represent the actual shortfall of UBGS in each ward in terms of minimum requirements as per national standards. The present unequal distribution of UBGS in the city is a matter of social and environmental justice that needs to be addressed. The indices show a correlation of 0.6688. This framework can help decision-makers protect, preserve, and promote the city's UBGS by adopting a bottom-up approach to solve local issues and providing safe and socially inclusive public spaces for all sections of society.

Evaluation is one of the most important steps in the planning process that has been widely considered in recent decades by scholars in the field of planning. Despite the extensive studies on the plan and planning evaluation, no specific studies have yet been conducted on planning evaluation schools. This gap can cause a theoretical and practical ambiguity on the subject of planning evaluation. Hence, exploring and describing theoretical and practical historical developments in the field of evaluation schools in planning can be useful in resolving this ambiguity. In this article, using the meta-theory and a genealogical perspective, four schools of planning were identified: The causal school under the rational planning theories, the communicative school under the participatory planning theories, the Dutch school under the Dutch planning, and the IOR School of planning, and finally, the evidence-oriented school under the emerging theories of sustainable development and environmental planning. This classification was conducted based on the philosophy of thought, the influential scholars, and how to use evaluation. Identifying these schools of thought contributes to a clear understanding of how this concept is described and applied in planning evaluation, states the reasons for its formation and critiques of each school, and ultimately strengthens its practice.