West Bay Business District in Doha, State of Qatar: Envisioning a Vibrant Transit-Oriented Development

Deema Alattar,Rashid Al-Matwi,Raffaello Furlan,Michael Grosvald

doi:10.3390/designs5020033

Abstract

In recent decades, Doha, the capital of Qatar, has experienced a large-scale transformation due to globalization and rapid economic growth. Recently, these changes have led to a focus on infrastructural development and the launch of the city’s metro project, whose success will depend heavily on Transit-Oriented Development (TOD). TOD focuses on the “3Ds” principles—design, density, and diversity—aiming to create walkable neighborhoods and well-integrated public transportation, with diverse mixed land uses and high-density, sustainable growth. In combining the concepts of livability, sustainable urbanism, and urban sociology, TOD leads to the creation of vibrant and active neighborhoods. The present research project focuses on TOD around Doha’s West Bay metro station, using the city’s central business district as a case study. The aim of this research project is to investigate the existing site conditions of the West Bay area, evaluate them with respect to TOD principles, and then propose a master plan for improved development. The final product of the research project is a proposal with design guidelines that are aimed at increasing the ridership of the West Bay metro station and creating a more attractive and dynamic neighborhood.

Highlights

In the past three decades, Doha, which is the capital of the State of Qatar, has undergone massive changes due to rapid economic development; these changes include demographic growth, urban expansion, sporting mega-events, and globalization
Transit-Oriented Development (TOD) development is a crucial component of Doha’s urban planning strategy, through which activities in the vicinity of metro stations are clustered in mixed-use developments, which lead to walkable neighborhoods and less reliance on cars, in turn reducing traffic congestion and air pollution [2,3,4,5]
The design proposal outlines series of recommendarecommendaand design proposal outlines a series of recommendations, creating a livable, active tions, in to that were in section atat tions, inresponse response tothe thedeficiencies deficiencies that wereidentified identified inthe theprevious previous section aimed in response to the deficiencies that were identified in the previous section aimed ataimed creating creating a livable, active creating a livable, active

Summary

Introduction

In the past three decades, Doha, which is the capital of the State of Qatar, has undergone massive changes due to rapid economic development; these changes include demographic growth, urban expansion, sporting mega-events, and globalization. Along with its obvious benefits, this rapid growth has led to a number of problems and challenges: urban sprawl, traffic congestion, air pollution, deficiencies in the built environment, and a general lack of affordable housing [1]. Efforts to resolve such problems in urban areas worldwide have led to a movement toward public transportation and Transit-Oriented. Government authorities in Qatar have invested in large-scale transit development throughout the country, with a particular focus on the city of Doha This includes the Doha metro project, long-distance rail, Bus Rapid Transit (BRT), and the Light Rail Train (LRT). TOD development is a crucial component of Doha’s urban planning strategy, through which activities in the vicinity of metro stations are clustered in mixed-use developments, which lead to walkable neighborhoods and less reliance on cars, in turn reducing traffic congestion and air pollution [2,3,4,5]

Methods

Results

Conclusion