Group 20
We have learned in class that the pattern of roads and transportation greatly affect the way a city grows, and into what capacity its traders will shift.
Consider not the city for a moment, but a larger scale. For a long time in history, man was landlocked. But with the advent of sailing drove coastal development. Railroads in america made a western expansion possible.
When we see these non conventional factors affecting growth its more easy to palate the possibility of road patterns affecting growth as well.
More than affecting growth, road patterns can DETERMINE what a city or region will become.
Take the capital beltway, so many people use it for easy commuting that the northern VA, DC, southern MD region is going to be heavily retail and industry. Lots of jobs.
Then again, look at the afgan mountainous regions. These regions are notoriously turoilic, and have a severe lack of proper roads and infrastructure. The coreloation is more than coincidental.
Perhaps looking forward we can design our city to a more efficient degree, facilitating every type of urban form.
Walt disney was a futurist and proposed many alternatives to the interstate highway system. But he really got his ideas from one Fuller. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Buckminster_Fuller
Check him out. lots of crazy vertical farms and walking path/beehive 3d cities.
I really agree that patterns of road and transportation affect the outcome of the city. City serves as the center of culture, education, business, housing, transportation, etc. If the patterns are not designed right, it is very likely for that city to fail its original function, thus break apart eventually.
ReplyDelete-Hae Jin Kye
I would agree with that. But you also have to take into account public transportation and how those stations work. I.e. bus stops. if they are too crowded or far away then they are impractical. also almost all major cities are tied in with their international airports/ports. If those are run inefficciently then the city loses tourism/business and then the city reverts back to its original, not industrialized form.
DeleteAmeen group 24
Being one who is interested in going into the transportation sector and a Disney fan, I really liked this post. I'm also glad you made a reference to the vertical farms; they really are quite interesting. I strongly believe transportation in the simplest of terms have made it possible for goods to traveled long distances in short periods of time allowing for cities to strive in locations not always supportive of large populations.
ReplyDeleteI believe we need to go back to our routes and see what made our country great; as you stated railroads. A goal of mine is to see high speed rail be implemented all over the great states. From what I've heard it won't happen soon because major airlines aren't keen to the idea and would lose profit.
Here's a link showcasing high speed rail around the world!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FTn7d4KJqx8
Group 8 - Matt Davis
Paolo Soleri is currently experimenting with a similar idea. He uses arcology (the mix of architecture and ecology) to create newer more futuristic buildings. He has created an experimental town in Arizona called Arcosanti and his ideas have lead to designs such as Crystal Island in Moscow. The building there is proposed to be 450 meters tall and have offices, hotel, retail stores and even living space for 500 international students. Unfortunately the project was put on hold due to the global recession.
ReplyDeleteAmeen Mustafa