Linking Ecology and Service Function in Scenic Road Landscape Planning: A Spatial Analysis Approach

Abstract

Abstract With the promotion of the concepts “Beautiful China” and “Green Transportation” in China, the conventional method of road landscape planning that primarily considered greening functions and visual aesthetics fell short of satisfying the current demands. The service quality provided for users of scenic roads increasingly became the major concern in landscape planning. In this article, the concept and methods of spatial and functional structure for scenic roads were introduced, focusing especially on the ecological and service value. In terms of the features of scenic roads in China, we proposed the ecological pattern analysis method based on sustainable development, the spatial structure analysis method based on different scales, and the service function method based on a point-axis system. Guided by ecological and service values, the multifunctional integrated service framework was established to form the landscape planning method system for scenic roads. Using the West Stone Forest Scenic Road (Xiqiao to Shilin) along the Stone Forest World Natural Heritage in Yunnan province of China as the case study, the landscape ecological pattern evaluation and planning, the landscape structure and spatial function planning, and the point-axis system and service extension planning were aligned with the analysis of roadside landscape types and characteristics by employing high-resolution remote sensing images and a geographic information system. By taking the multivalued service function into account, the integrated spatial analysis planning approach for West Stone Forest Scenic Road was established, which provided a theoretical reference and method guidance for establishing the theory and technology approaches for scenic road landscape planning in China.