The impact of the built-up environment of streets on pedestrian activities in the historical area

Abstract

Street vitality plays an important role in improving residents’ quality of life and advancing urban development. However, traditional research methods pay minimal attention to pedestrians’ behavior, ignoring crowd preferences vis-à-vis the street-space. Utilizing the historic block of Shapowei in Xiamen as an illustrative example, this manuscript systematically examines the impact of this historic block’s built environment on street vitality. Using multimode analysis technologies including Global Positioning System (GPS) and Geographic Information System (GIS) software helps analyze time and space data on pedestrians; evaluates the space perception of the residents; assesses the street’s visual appeal, as well as the appeal of its commercial activities; identifies the environmental elements and rules of the high-vitality street space. Therefore, it puts forward suggestions for street planning and architectural design. This article constructs a street vitality evaluation system based on pedestrians’ time and space data, providing a new perspective for the research and design of the historical block space. In conclusion, the research suggests that the spatial change of the street, the openness of the building facade, and the spatial distribution of the shops have different impacts on pedestrians’ activities when the built-up environment is a concern.