Urban Flashcards
(25 cards)
The city layout in EMDCs
- Central business district (CBD)
- Inner city (old housing and old industry)
- New housing Zone.
- New business zone.
Reasons for the CBD
- Central location for all roads and railways to converge.
- Gridiron street pattern.
- Most accessible location for workers.
- Accessible to most people for shops and businesses.
- Often a strong geographical location (eg, Glasgow is surrounded by hills for defense)
Features of the CBD
- Tall multi-story buildings due to high land value (Hilton Hotel)
- Little open space, high density of roads and buildings (Merchant City)
- Gridiron street pattern (Hope Street)
- Modern shopping malls and pedestrian precincts, department stores (Buchanan Galleries)
- Cultural/historical buildings (Gallery of Modern Art)
- Offices.
- Entertainment zone (Theatre Royal)
- Bus and railway stations (Queen Street Station)
- High traffic and pedestrian flow.
Features of the Inner City
Govan
- A high density of buildings and lack of good quality open space (eg, parks)
- Gridiron street pattern.
- Older 19th-century tenements.
- Poor quality housing, no gardens.
- Derelict land which is the sight of former factories.
- Old industry in decline or shut down (shipyards/mills)
- A declining population with high unemployment.
- Large areas of redevelopment or urban regeneration.
- High levels of air pollution from traffic congestion.
- Visual pollution in the form of vandalism and graffiti.
- Areas demolished and used for motorways and ring roads.
Features of the New Housing Zone
Newton Mearns
- Low density and larger houses as the land is cheaper away from the CBD.
- Street pattern designed by town planners in modern cul-de-sacs and crescents to reduce the speed of traffic and so it is safer for children.
- Good quality open spaces (eg, parks)
- Newer 20th and 21st-century housing, likely to be detached or semi-detached houses.
- Good quality housing with gardens and space for extensions like conservatories.
- Surrounded by green space away from the industry.
- Convenience shopping facilities (eg, corner shops)
- Nearby schools for children.
- Low levels of air pollution as far from CBD traffic.
Features of the New Industrial Zone
Hillington Industrial estate
- Found on the outskirts of the city on a greenfeild site.
- Needs flat land with open space for expansion and car parks.
- Low density (1 or 2 story buildings) The land here is cheaper so low-density factories can be built here.
- Modern buildings built of brick and finished with glass to attract businesses (separated from housing) Landscaped with trees and shrubs.
- Factories are grouped together in industrial estates. Main roads are nearby for easy import/export (M8/M77)
- Large car parks for workers and delivery lorries.
Features of the New Business District
Braehead
- These will be found on spacious sites on the outskirts of a town/city. They need plenty of space to build large supermarkets, furniture stores and entertainment facilities like bowling alleys and cinemas which need large plots.
- Beside main roads/motorways for easy access (M8/m77)
- Very large buildings (eg, cinemas and supermarkets)
- Shops and services grouped together in retail parks.
- Separated from housing and industry but close by for easy access for customers and workers.
- Thousands of free parking spaces, making it attractive to customers.
Housing Problems in Glasgow
- Most of the tenements which had been built to house the industrial workers in the 19th century were in a poor state.
- Tenement flats were small and overcrowded. They lacked electricity, running water, central heating, inside toilets or gardens. Inside the houses, there were damp and respiratory diseases such as TB and Bronchitis were common.
- The problems were made worse by the smoke and pollutants which came from nearby factories.
Housing Solutions in Glasgow
-Comprehensive redevelopment areas (CDAs) Areas would be compleatly bulldozed to allow building from scratch.
-Build large council estates on the citys edge (castlemilk)
But people didnt know their neigbours and often didnt like the new areas. Streets became run down and gained a reputation for crime. Families moved out and the empty houses were vandalised or set on fire.
-Build high rise flats on the areas where tenements were demolished. This was a cost effective solution. But they were poorly built, and had leaking roofs and lifts which often broke down. People felt isolated and sense of community broke down.
-Move the population on to brand new towns outside Glasgow.
-Renovate remaining tenements. This was cost effective and people liked them. Internal walls were removed to make flats much bigger, very often two flats would be knocked into one. They were also rewired and new central heating systems were installed, windows were double glazed and new kitechens and bathrooms were fitted.
Inner City Redevelopment
Glasgow Harbour
-The quayside in Yorkhill and Partick is currently being redeveloped.
-The former Meadowside Granary, old shipyards, Docklands, warehouses and the disused Glasgow to Clydebank railway have been demolished to make way for 2,500 new flats, 200,000m squared of office space, retail developments, parkland, and Glasgow’s riverside transport museum.
Pacific Quay
-A mixture of business, housing, and leisure. It includes the Glasgow Science Centre, IMAX cinema and Millennium Tower and a new media village where BBC Scotland, STV, The Glasgow Herald, 50,000m squared of office space, a 150-bed hotel, a marina and 300 new houses.
-£20 million Finnieston bridge (Clyde Arc) connects the area with the north side of the river. It is the first low-level traffic bridge built across the Clyde for 100 years.
Traffic Problems
- Increasing car numbers. There are more cars on the road today. More road journeys are made by car as people prefer to use them instead of public transport, as it is more convenient.
- Commuters. 25% of people who work in Glasgow do not live in the city. Each day commuters converge on the city center during rush hours causing congestion.
- Few bridging points. Glasgow only has a limited number of bridging points across the Clyde. Vehicles are squeezed into bottlenecks, which increase congestion. The Kingston bridge alone has to cope with 170.00 vehicles per day.
Effects of Traffic
- Increased journey time.
- Vibrations from traffic can cause damage to buildings.
- Increase noise from traffic can annoy people who live in the area.
- Increased air pollution which can harm the environment and is not pleasant to people either.
- Road rage can increase which can be dangerous.
- More accidents can occur.
Solutions to Traffic Problems
- Build new roads (M74 extension taking people away from the CBD.
- Improve public transport. Central and Queen Street Station have been modernised and platforms have been extended to cope with longer trains. Bus lanes and priority access. There are plans to modernize the underground system.
- Improving Traffic flow in the CBD. Having a one-way system to help traffic flow (bath street)
- Having traffic wardens, parking meters, and yellow lines to reduce the number of cars on the roadside. Multistory car parks can also be built to house the cars.
- Pedestrianisation can be done to make areas safer and nicer for shoppers (Buchanan Street)
Shopping Changes (positives and negatives)
- Out of town shopping centers like Braehead and Silverburn have been built with plenty of free parking. These are attractive as people often want to be inside and warm doing their shopping rather than outside. However, competition with city retailers has meant that some shops in town have closed down. (Argyle Street)
- New retail parks and trading estates (Strathkelvin Retail Park) These means that shoppers can take home big bulky goods in their car. Although some smaller companies have had to close down as they cannot compete.
- Pedestrianised shopping streets (Buchanan Street) are much safer and also decrease the amount of noise and air pollution in the area. However, cars are restricted to other areas and congest neighboring streets.
- New supermarkets are open 24 hours in out of town locations (Silverburn) This allows shoppers to buy everything they need and include services like opticians at a time which suits them. But smaller shops cannot compete like butchers and may be forced to shut down, this makes more empty units in the CBD and an increase in charity shops.
CBD Problems
- Closure of shops due to increase competition from out of town shopping centers, so increased rents and rates for properties in the CBD.
- Declining custom due to movement of population to areas outside of the city, for example, new towns.
- Accessibility problems especially for drivers, for example, expensive parking fees.
- Several undercover shopping centers including Buchanan Galleries has taken business away from the shops in the area.
CBD Solutions
- Undercover shopping centers provide a solution to problems by attracting more customers to the city center away from out of town shopping centers.
- To encourage population back to the city, buildings such as warehouses and former public buildings have been converted into modern flats.
- Vibrant pedestrianized streets have been created in the CBD with street entertainment, landscaping and street furniture to make it more appealing.
- Unique selling points (USPs) and high-end shops are used to attract people to the area as they are unique (LEGO shop)
Problems in Shanty Towns (social and environmental)
Rochina
Social
-Extremely Overcrowded meaning diseases spread quickly and fires would kill many.
-Very few services (running water-disease can spread, electricity, refuse collection-waste is just dumped and more chance of disease is created or proper roads-the police cannot get in to solve issues)
-Poor sanitation (disease is common and life expectancy is low)
-High unemployment (not enough jobs for migrants and so there are many jobs in the black market which is very dangerous.
-High crime rates and gang culture (drugs)
-The location of the favelas near to steep slopes, rubbish dumps and toxic factories which are all very dangerous.
-Landslides are common after heavy rain which can kill many.
Environmental
-There is a lot of waste from shanty towns.
-Pollution of guanabara Bay from raw sewage and waste products from industry this is a threat to rare habitats of dolphins, turtles and damage to mangrove swamps
-If beaches become contaminated this would be a threat to tourism which is Rio’s biggest industry.
Solutions in Shanty Towns
Self Help Schemes
-Councils provide residents with bricks, cement, wood, and tiles to upgrade their own homes.
-Water and electricity may be added over time.
-This settlement eventually becomes legal and established and refuse collections may increase.
-Although this is a cheap method, houses may not be built to a decent standard.
Site and Service Schemes
-Local councils build housing and improve services in the area such as schools.
-These can be expensive although council can claim back money from rent in the future.
-However, these tend to be quite small projects as money in Brazil is limited.
Guanabara Bay Clean-up Programme
-New sewage treatment plants
-Stricter fines for companies who dispose of waste illegally
-Use of landfill sites to produce biogas (cheap energy)
Urban Changes in Rio
Barra Da Tijuca Suburb
- Wealthy beach suburb which has grown due to counter urbanization and people have moved out of the congested polluted area of central Rio to a cleaner, healthier and safer environment with less crime.
- Luxury apartment blocks with secure parking bars on windows and CCTV entry are in this area.
- The suburb also has many shopping malls, theme parks, tourism, and recreation facilities.
- This is the location of the athlete’s village and many venues for the 2016 Olimpic Games.
Rio’s Transport Problems
- Large volumes of traffic are forced along a few main roads causing severe congestion.
- This creates noise and air pollution from vehicle exhausts.
- Rio is world famous for its traffic problems.
Rio’s Transport Solutions
Rio-Niteroi Bridge
-This bridge connects Rio with the city of Niteroi on the other side of Guanabara Bay, this eliminates a long road drive or a ferry crossing.
-But due to more cars using the bridge it gets congested at rush hour.
The Yellow Line Expressway
-Two long tunnels take it under the mountains of the Tijuca National Park. It is a toll road so people pay to use it as Rio’s authorities didn’t have enough money to pay for it on their own.
-But lots of vehicles use the road every day and it sometimes gets congested. It has however taken 40% of the traffic from local roads.
Improving Public transport (Rio’s Metro System)
-Extending line 1 to the tourist areas will reduce the number of buses on congested roads.
-Building a line 3 from the city center to Niteroi, easing the congestion on the bridge.
-Building a new line between the airport and the city center.
-But only part of this has started as it is too expensive.
Rio’s Environmental Problems
Air Pollution
-Mist can mix with pollution from vehicles and factories creating a brown smog which can cause respiratory problems such as bronchitis.
Water Pollution in Guanabara Bay
-Pollution is a major threat to wildlife and tourism.
-Many areas are not good for swimming and smell very bad, if this pollution was to spread to the tourist areas, tourism would decrease and many would lose their jobs and it would hurt the economy.
Rio’s Environmental Solutions
- The local government has brought new environmental laws and are stricter on those who pollute the environment.
- New sewage treatment plans have been built.
Rio’s Waste Problem
Rochina
- There are no proper roads making waste collection by lorry almost impossible.
- Much of this rubbish is dumped in locations and this leads to diseases such as cholera and an increase in rat populations.
- If it rains these waste piles can cause landslides killing many.
- These landfill sites are an eyesore and smell bad.
