Streetscape skeleton measurement and classification

Chester Harvey, Lisa Aultman-Hall, Austin Troy and Stephanie E Hurley

Environment and Planning B, 2017, vol. 44, issue 4, 668-692

Abstract: The scale and proportions of “streetscape skeletons,†the three-dimensional spaces of streets defined by the massing and arrangement of surrounding buildings, are theoretically relevant to the way human users perceive and behave. Nonetheless, the dominant ways of measuring and identifying streets emphasize vehicular service and functionality. Moreover, existing built environment-based classifications have focused on recommended forms rather than characterizing the full range of existing conditions that must be accounted for in policy and understanding of human–environment interactions. To work toward a better streetscape measurement and classification scheme, this study investigated how large numbers of streetscapes could be efficiently measured to evaluate design patterns across and between multiple cities. Using a novel GIS-based method, 12 streetscape skeleton variables were measured on more than 120,000 block-length streetscapes in three northeastern U.S. cities: Boston, MA, New York, NY, and Baltimore, MD. Logistic regression models based on these variables were unsuccessful at distinguishing between cities, confirming that the variables were similarly applicable to each city and that the cities had comparable streetscape skeleton identities. Cluster analyses were then used to identify four streetscape skeleton classes that were also consistent between cities: upright , compact , porous , and open . These classes were distinct from the widely used highway functional class system, reinforcing the distinction between streetscape design and roadway functionality and thus the importance of accounting for them separately. The streetscape skeleton classes provide a digestible yet objective system for identifying prevalent streetscape designs that are appropriate for urban policy design, advocacy, and urban systems research.

Keywords: Built environment; environmental design; GIS; classification; urban design (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2017
References: View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (2)

Downloads: (external link)
https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/0265813515624688 (text/html)

Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:sae:envirb:v:44:y:2017:i:4:p:668-692

DOI: 10.1177/0265813515624688

Access Statistics for this article

More articles in Environment and Planning B
Bibliographic data for series maintained by SAGE Publications ().