Abstract
This empirical study investigates large urban park cooling effects on the thermal comfort of occupants in the vicinity of the main central park, located in Madrid, Spain. Data were gathered during hot summer days, using mobile observations and a questionnaire. The results showed that the cooling effect of this urban park of 125 ha area at a distance of 150 m could reduce air temperatures by an average of 0.63 °C and 1.28 °C for distances of 380 m and 665 meters from the park. Moreover, the degree of the physiological equivalent temperature (PET) index at a distance of 150 meters from the park is on average 2 °C PET and 2.3 °C PET less compared to distances of 380 m and 665 m, respectively. Considering the distance from the park, the correlation between occupant perceived thermal comfort (PTC) and PET is inverse. That is, augmenting the distance from the park increases PET, while the extent of PTC reduces accordingly. The correlation between these two factors at the nearest and furthest distances from the park is meaningful (p-value < 0.05). The results also showed that large-scale urban parks generally play a significant part in creating a cognitive state of high-perceived thermal comfort spaces for residents.
Highlights
Due to climate change and the growing urbanization, the heat in cities is rising rapidly [1,2]
This study examined the potential of large urban parks in providing thermal comfort for citizens living within the park perimeter
The results extracted amidst six hot summer days in Madrid show that large urban parks exhibit a cooling effect
Summary
Due to climate change and the growing urbanization, the heat in cities is rising rapidly [1,2]. The increase in temperature in urban areas, especially densely populated areas has given rise to the phenomenon of urban heat islands (UHI) [6,7], which can threaten the health and comfort of citizens [8,9]. The green urban spaces have been researched by numerous studies as an adaptive strategy to reduce the effect of urban heat and improve the health of citizens, by considering thermal comfort [10,11] as well as their socio-economic role [12]. Various studies have been conducted on the effects of various types of green infrastructures aiming at reducing urban heat and thermal discomfort [13,14], which include different scales and forms such as small local parks [15], large urban parks [16], urban gardens [17], green roofs [18,19], green walls [20,21] and street trees [22,23].
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