ELEMENTS OF URBAN

S PA C E S

A S S I G N M E N T- 3

REHAN KHAN 15041AA104 I 7TH

SEMESTER
SQUARES AND STREETS
 SQUARES
• Great public spaces are the living room of the city - the place where
people come together to enjoy the city and each other. Public
spaces make high quality life in the city possible - they form the
stage and backdrop to the drama of life. Public spaces range from
grand central plazas and squares, to small, local neighborhood
parks.

• List of some of well-known public squares.

i. Nathan Philips Square, Toronto, Canada

ii. Old Town Square, Parague, Czech Republic

iii. Public Square Street, Kowloon, Hong Kong

 ■ Streets are the connections
STREETS between spaces and places,
as well as being spaces
themselves.  They are
defined by their physical
dimension and character as
well as the size, scale, and
character of the buildings
that line them.  Streets range
from grand avenues such as
the Champs-Elysees in Paris
to small, intimate pedestrian
streets.  The pattern of the
street network is part of what
defines a city and what
makes each city unique.
CLASSIFICATION OF URBAN ROADS:
Besides expressways and freeways, the urban roads can be classified as :

Arterial Road: Roads for intra-urban through traffic, with no frontage access, no standing
vehicle and very little cross traffic and minimum roadway intersection spacing 500 m.
Divided road with high speed traffic and many lanes.
The space standards for arterial roads are 50-60m.

Collector Street: Streets for collecting and distributing traffic from and to local streets and also for
providing access to arterial and sub-arterial roads, having free frontage access but no parked vehicles
and having heavy cross traffic and minimum roadway inter-section spacing 150 m.
Low to moderate capacity leading to residential areas.
The space standards for collector streets are 20-30m.

Sub-Arterial Road: Roads for intra-urban through traffic with frontage access but no standing
vehicles having high cross traffic, high capacity intersection and minimum roadway inter-section
spacing 300 m.
Divided road connecting major points in the city.
The space standard for sub arterial roads are 30-40m.
Local Street: Streets for access to residence, business or other abutting property, having
necessary parking and pedestrian movement. Free Access.

Low capacity residential street.

The space standards for local streets are 10- 20m.

Service Road: Smaller road changeover from high speed road as sub arterial to
connector .
ROAD NETWORK and STREET PATTERNS:

• Road network determines the shape and

size of the block.
• It determines the Fabric of the city
• The word Streets could be used broadly
for all type of roads, paths , avenues,
boulevards, arterial roads , collector
roads.
• Roads connect places
• Streets connect people.
• Roads used for transport.
• Streets used for public interaction
USE OF LANDSCAPE IN URBAN DESIGN
– The landscape is the green part of the city that weaves
throughout - in the form of urban parks, street trees,
plants, flowers, and water in many forms. The
landscape helps define the character and beauty of a
city and creates soft, contrasting spaces and elements.
Green spaces in cities range from grand parks such as
Central Park in New York City and the Washington DC
Mall, to small intimate pocket parks.

– Some elements of landscape are:-

i. Tree Avenues

ii. Street Fencing

iii. Side Walks

TREE AVENUES
Standard:
• No hard and fast rule may be laid down for the spacing of avenue trees; it depends on the type of trees.

• A minimum spacing of 10-12 m should be followed.

• The trees in the formal avenue planting should be planted in rows on either side of the road in a
staggered manner.

• At urban intersections the trees should be at least 3 mt away from the intersections for right viewing
distance.

• In landscaping, an avenue, is traditionally a straight path or road with a line of trees or

large shrubs running along each side.

• It emphasize the "coming to," or arrival at a landscape or architectural feature.

• In most cases, the trees planted in an avenue will be all of the same species or cultivar, so as to give
uniform appearance along the full length of the avenue.
STREET FENCING
The fencing used around your home and those of your neighbors will have a major impact on
the overall visual amenity of Freeling Estate. As such, the height, materials and position of all
fencing should be chosen with care.
HEIGHT MATERIAL
0.9M – 1.2M Picket (timber, steel, aluminium).
1.2M Piered brick or masonary posts
with steel, timber or aluminium
uprights.
SIDE WALKS

• Walking is the most democratic way to get around. It is the oldest mode of transport, the most
common in the world, it’s free, and it may even help you burn a few calories.
• Nevertheless, people are walking less and less. As cities have become more sprawled, highways
have replaced sidewalks, creating significant obstacles to walking safely.
• Sidewalks with broken concrete, narrow widths, and illegally parked vehicles on them are further
evidence that walking has is slowly being suffocated by other modes of transport that are less
healthy for both people and cities.
 SIDE WALKS
The eight principles of the sidewalk:
• Proper sizing
• Quality surfaces
• Efficient drainage
• Universal accessibility
• Secure connections
• Attractive spaces
• Permanent security
• Clear signage
LIGHTING AND ILLUMINATION
 STREET LIGHTING
■ Street lighting is one of most
critical elements of urban
infrastructure.
■ It is a key service that public
authorities need to provide for
ensuring adequate lighting on
the road, which leads to
enhanced safety and security in
the city, apart from improving
visibility during evenings and
night.
■ The use of energy efficient
technologies has the potential to
save costs because of reduction
in electricity consumption.
 METHODS OF LIGHTING
Up Lighting
• Up lighting is the most commonly
used technique to illuminate
trees, wall, statues, sculpture, and
other objects.
• Light fixtures are ground-mounted
or recessed into the ground and
directed upwards, away from the
viewer to prevent glare, about 1/2
the distance from the trunk to the
edge of the canopy or “drip line.”
Cross Lighting
•Cross lighting is the technique
used for lighting trees, bushes,
and other objects from two or
more sides.
•The cross beams of light often
reveal the 3D form of the object.
•Using 2 or more lighting fixtures
Down Lighting
generally allows more creativity
•Down lighting is often used to create and draws attention to the lighted
object.
several lighting effects by mounting
the fixtures low on the trees.
•By this a "path lighting" or "spread
lighting" effect will be achieved,
illuminating walkways or paths.
•Mounting fixtures higher in the trees
pointing downward can provide
general lighting for safety and
security.
 STREET SIGNAGES

 Regulatory signs
 Warning signs
 Navigational guide signs
 Emergency services signs
 Motorist services signs
 Public transportation signs
 Traffic generator signs
 General information signs
Function of signs:
The main purpose of a signs is to communicate, to convey information such that its receiver can make cognitive
decisions based on the information provided. In general, signs can be classified into the following functions:
Information: signs giving information about services and facilities, e.g., maps, directories, instructions for use,
etc.
(b) Direction: signs leading to services, facilities, functional spaces and key areas, e.g., sign posts, directional
arrows, etc.
(c) Identification: signs indicating services and facilities, e.g., room names & numbers, toilet signs, number of
floors, etc.
(d) Safety and Regulatory: signs giving warning or safety instructions, e.g., warning signs, traffic signs, exit
signs, rules & regulations, etc.

Types of Signages:
• Banner sign
• Awnings and wall signs
• Monument signs
 Conclusion:
• When choosing a sign one must consider several aspects such as the desired size, type and placement of a
sign.

• The first question that you should ask is how much space do you have to construct a sign.

• If you have limited space you should consider constructing a wall, canopy or awning sign.

• If the site is large enough to construct a monument sign you should do so in addition to wall, canopy or
awning signs.

• Architecturally integrate all signs with their surroundings in terms of size, shape, color, texture and
lighting so that they are complementary to the overall design of the building and are not in visual
competition with other signs in the area.