ECE 2521 - Transportation and Land Use, Urban and Regional Planning

STRUCTURE & PATTERNS OF URBAN SETTLEMENTS

Urbanization (%):
The process in which an increasing proportion of the country’s population is concentrated in
urban areas. It is caused by rural-urban migration.

An urban area is characterized by higher population density and vast human features in
comparison to areas surrounding it. Urban areas may be cities, towns or conurbations, but the
term is not commonly extended to rural settlements such as villages.

Urban Growth (numbers):

Refers to the increase in actual number of people living in cities due to urbanization and
natural increases. Thus, the increase of the number of people living in urban areas.

Urban Expansion (area):

Is the increase of the actual physical size of an urban area. Urban sprawl is the unplanned
spread of urban areas.

URBAN PROFILES
The urban profile is a cross-section of the city from the CBD to the periphery. It is a view of
a city as seen from the side. The tallest buildings are in the centre and the buildings become
lower towards the edge of the city.
The differences in relief are ignored, while the height of the buildings is the important factor.
In a city in the developed world you might expect the following changes:
 Buildings get older towards the centre
 There will be many newer buildings in the CBD
 Building density increases towards the centre
 Buildings are taller towards the centre
 Roads and pavements are busier towards the centre
 There is less open space towards the centre
 Beyond the edge of the city is the rural-urban fringe, an area being gradually,
urbanized as villages are taken over by new housing for commuters
 Some towns have protected these areas with “green belts” where development is
restricted.

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Reasons:
 The original site of the settlement has been replaced by the CBD
 Most transport routes meet here, making it the town’s most accessible point.
 Shops and offices compete for space here, so land is expensive
 To make the most of the land, buildings are tall and close together

Bid-Rent theory
The concept of bid-rent is the value of land for different purposes, such as commercial,
manufacturing and residential purposes.
Land at the centre of a city is most expensive (it is the most accessible land to public
transport, there is only a small amount of land available)

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 Street patterns
Urban street patterns are determined by the physical relief, urban planning of specific urban
areas and changing needs of inhabitants.

Street pattern Grid or gridiron Radial (concentric) or Irregular pattern

cobweb
Description  A regular, planned street  Planned street pattern  Can be planned or
pattern  Streets radiate out unplanned
 Roads meet at right angles, from a central point  Streets often
forming blocks (physical feature or planned around
 Often found in linear  building or other physical features
settlements landmark) (river, lake,
mountain or
coastline)
 Visually older cities
that developed
haphazardly
 Street blocks
different sizes and
shapes
Advantages  Plots can be easily  Easier flow of traffic  Easier flow of traffic
subdivided  Equal access to centre  Not monotonous
 Easy to plan and lay out of town
 Easy to find your way round
(easy access for pedestrians)
 Shorter distances to travel
(save time and fuel)
 No wastage of land
(maximum use for
construction)
Disadvantages  Traffic congestion as traffic  Can be congested in  Easy to get lost
stops at every intersection centre  Direction can be
 Monotonous (regularity)  Wasted space difficult to find
 More accidents (irregular plots)
(intersections)
Example

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Factors influencing the location of the land use zones
 Centripetal forces,
 centrifugal forces,
 land values

Centripetal forces - These forces tend to keep certain functions in the city centre and attract
others to it.
Centrifugal forces - These factors cause functions to move from the city centre to the urban
periphery

Land values
i) Cost of land
 Big retail outlets (e.g. Woolworths) will pay high prices because they want
accessibility
 Heavy industries cannot afford high land values because they need lots of space
ii) Compatibility
 Some functions are able to benefit each other (which makes them compatible)
 Compatible functions – retail outlets, financial institutions
 Incompatible functions – industry and high income residential areas
iii) Accessibility
 For retail outlets, accessibility to customers is the most important factor influencing
location
 Customers must be able to get to shops easily
 Remember – the CBD should be the most accessible part of the city as all the main
transport routes converge here.

Gentrification, filtering, invasion and succession

Gentrification is the process by which middle-class people move into deteriorated inner-city
neighborhoods and renovate the housing.
Gentrification occurs as housing deteriorates and its move downwards through the social
groups.
Most U.S. cities have at least one substantially renovated inner-city neighborhood where
middle-class people live. Middle class-families attracted by some of the following:
 Houses may have more architectural character than those in the suburbs.
 Proximity to cultural and recreational activities

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  Commuting time reduced to CBD

Filtering reverses the process of gentrification as middle-income groups upgrade older city
properties by renovating them. Large houses in older neighborhoods are subdivided into
smaller dwellings for low-income families, through a process known as filtering. Over time,
landlords cease maintaining the properties when they are no longer economically feasible.

Invasion and succession

As the city grows and spreads out, the urban functions will invade and take over the rural
functions.

Another process which is changing the character of residential areas in South Africa is golf
estates and security living. Residential facilities of this type have become very popular.
This is mainly an offshoot of the current crime situation in South Africa. Most of the
security villages and golf estate focus on secure environment linked to specific lifestyle.
People buy into a specific lifestyle.

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Urban models

Every city performs certain functions to provide for the needs of its inhabitants. Each activity
needs its own specialist type of land use such as:
 Administration: town hall, courts of justice, government offices, police headquarters
 Industy: factories and workshops, industrial estates

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  Commerce: shops, warehouses, banks, building societies, insurance offices, general
offices
 Transport: bus, rail, taxi and air termini, roads, pavements, car parks, etc.
 Residential: housing, hotels, nursing homes
 Recreation: space for leisure centres, parks, playing fields, theatres, cinemas, clubs
 Social services: schools, hospitals, health centres, fire stations, water and sewage
treatment works.
As towns grow, the different functions that they perform tend to separate out into different
areas. For example, industries may group together along a riverside or railway to form an
industrial zone. As a result, it is possible to recognize functional zones within every town,
which are characterised by distinctive types of land use.
To simplify and explain the complex pattern of land use in settlements a number of models
have been developed. The three main models are the concentric model, sector and the
multiple nuclei.
Applications of the Models
Examples
 Concentric Zone Model –Families in newer houses tend to live in an outer ring –
Families in older houses tend to live in the inner ring
 Sector Model –Given two families who own their homes, the family with the higher
income will not live in the same sector as the family with a lower income.
 Nuclei Model –People with same ethnic background are likely to live near each other.
Urban settlement issues/problems
Urban problems are becoming more challenging and demanding for urban planners. With the
rapid increase in population and expanding of land-use zones, urban areas experience greater
demands for infrastructure, basic needs and employment. Urban problems are on the increase
because of rapid urbanization - CBD heat island and urban decay.
1. Overcrowding and informal settlements
Overcrowding is a major problem for most urban areas. Cities cannot keep up with the
demand for housing and infrastructure, and so informal settlements are erected to
accommodate people from the rural areas and immigrants from the bordering states of South
Africa.
2. Lack of basic services and poverty
The increasing demand for services and infrastructure is greatest informal settlements and the
transition zone, and this is where poverty is also the greatest problem. Basic services include
housing, healthcare facilities, educational facilities, sanitation, clean drinking water and
electricity. These are basic services because they are required for human wellbeing.
Infrastructure includes roads, power lines and communication networks. People need
infrastructure to access the services and function offered by the city.
3. CBD heat island
Urban decay: When the city, or parts of it, fall into a state of disrepair. Some of the
characteristics of urban decay are:

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  Slums
 Increasing crime
 Pollution
 Environmental degradation
 Inner city buildings being abandoned
4. Centralization and urban sprawl
Centralization is the high concentration of functions and people in a specific area. Urban
sprawl usually occurs on the fringe of the urban area. S.A. cities are characterised by low-
density urban sprawl.
Some of the major consequences of urban sprawl are: valuable agricultural land is used for
urbanization, People are increasingly located far away from places of employment and the
services and functions offered in the city, traffic congestion increases because the more
spread out a city becomes, the less viable public transport becomes so the more people use
cars.
5. Pollution and traffic congestion
6. Crime and healthcare
Increase in crime and a drop in life expectancy
Governance of urban settlements (sustainable strategies for urban development)

Problem Strategy

Overcrowding in CBD Encourage decentralization, improve public transport, improve

low-income areas, demolish old buildings, build more parks

Pollution (noise, air, Filters and silencers for vehicle exhausts; improve public
water) transport, provide parking facilities on edge of CBD, reduce
pollution from industry; provide basic services to informal
settlements

Poverty Create more jobs, provide housing and basic infrastructure;

upgrade urban areas with projects and programmes

Urban sprawl Protect green belt areas; provide education about nature
conservation

Traffic congestion Improve public transport; provide parking facilities on edge of

CBD

Informal settlements Provide basic services (housing, water, electricity, etc.); provide
employment, develop rural areas; encourage self-building and
low-income rentals

Inner city renewal, planning and the future

Urban and inner city renewal programmes

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1. Urban renewal programmes aim to:
 speed up service delivery
 upgrade infrastructure (such as roads)
 develop skills and create jobs
 fight crime and urban decay
2. Inner city renewal means rezoning to fight urban decay.
Disadvantages are:
 The area changes from a low-income to a middle-income or high income area.
 Although the area is renewed, the current residents have to move away to less
expensive areas, with possibly even worse social problems.
 Businesses that catered for the original low-income residents can suffer.
Planning urban settlements for the future:
1) A garden city is an urban area that is planned and for which there are strict rules about
development and maintaining the environment.
2) Planned urban areas should take into account people’s basic needs, access to services,
employment, safety and security, social and recreational needs, green belt areas, such
as parks, transport and future urban expansion.