The Relationship Between Walkability and Environment Characteristics in Cold Region Cities: Case Study in Harbin

Abstract

This study attempts to comprehensively and objectively understand whether the physical characteristic of urban space affect the walkability of Harbin city center. Besides, due to Harbin is located in the cold region, the temperature change a lot between winter and summer, this study also tried to find out whether the physical environment characteristics effect on walkability is different in winter and summer. Spatial feature and traffic management have been thought as the main determinate of walkability of urban space, however physical features and urban design details have been rarely mentioned. Yet, does physical quality deterioration of space decrease the walkability of urban center, does specific physical feature influence walkability differently in different season? To answer these question, users’ perception toward the physical features of mix-used streets, have been examined in this study. 14 physical characteristic problems have been identified in the studied area based on the understanding of pervious researches. Through observations and questionnaire surveys, the physical characteristics of each case study were evaluated and the physical problems were discovered. Additionally, users’ perception on the identified problems and their effects on walkability of the studied areas were found and defined, in both winter and summer.