Urban Users Research Articles

Urban Park Characteristic as a Key Element for Mental Health Restoration in Malaysia

A recent study has reported that the Malaysian urban population faces mental health problems due to urbanisation. Nature environment has been expected to give restoration experience among people. Therefore, the objective of this study is to analyse the relationship between park characteristics and mental health restoration in an urban park. Survey questionnaires (n=382) were distributed among urban park users. The analysis was conducted using the Partial Least Square Structural Equation Model. Results show that the Serene and Nature dimensions are the significant factors that give a restorative experience among urban park users. These findings can assist landscape architects in advocating for creating the urban park for mental health restoration. Keywords: Mental health; restoration experience; perceived sensory dimension, restorative environment eISSN: 2398-4287 © 2022. The Authors. Published for AMER ABRA cE-Bs by e-International Publishing House, Ltd., UK. This is an open access article under the CC BYNC-ND license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/). Peer–review under responsibility of AMER (Association of Malaysian Environment-Behaviour Researchers), ABRA (Association of Behavioural Researchers on Asians/Africans/Arabians) and cE-Bs (Centre for Environment-Behaviour Studies), Faculty of Architecture, Planning & Surveying, Universiti Teknologi MARA, Malaysia. DOI: https://doi.org/10.21834/ebpj.v7i20.3377

Reform of the Route Network as a Catalyst for Social Processes

The article examines the impact of the reform of the route network “Magistral” in Moscow on the citizens-passengers. A qualitative analysis of the comments of citizens in social networks was carried out, and problems that residents faced during the reform were found: the cancellation of the usual routes, changes in the transfer system, the renaming of routes, the transfer of stops. Differences in the vision of the development of surface urban public transport between urban planners and public transport users are found. It is concluded that passengers were not familiar with the new transport paradigm, it seems to them illogical and not suitable for the pattern of habitual movements, as well as leading to the loss of the existing urban identity. The qualitative analysis revealed the desire of residents to preserve the history and memory of the place through numbering and route tracing.

Modelling of wetting patterns for surface drip irrigation in dense clay soil

The proportion of agricultural water consumption is continuously decreasing due to increased competition for water resources by urban, industrial, and agricultural users. Drip irrigation is more efficient in terms of water and energy utilization. These considerations are critical in view of the ongoing struggle for water resources among various consumers due to water scarcity. Some of the most critical criteria in the effective design and maintenance of drip irrigation systems are the shape and size of the volume of wet soil beneath the emitter. Hence several statistical models were constructed in this research to estimate the dimensions of wetting patterns, which are critical for designing an optimal drip irrigation system. The Nash-Sutcliffe efficiency (NSE), coefficient of correlation (CC), and root mean square error (RMSE) criteria were used to assess the models' performance. The results showed that the Polynomial model was the most accurate for horizontal advance, with 0.94, 0.93, and 1.33 (cm) values for CC, NSE, and RMSE, respectively. For vertical advance, the logarithmic model showed 0.96, 0.96, and 0.72 (cm) values for CC, NSE, and RMSE. Thus, in the absence of a wetting pattern and under identical conditions, these models can be utilized to generate synthetic horizontal and vertical advances data.

The Circularity of MSW in Urban Landscapes: An Evaluation Method for a Sustainable System Implementation

The debate on the sustainable perspective of a circular economy and MSW (Municipal Solid Waste) management is no longer focused on the resolution of an emergency and on the pure technicality of creating efficient services. New light has been shed on the operational phase, as often unresolvable technical-environmental issues during service management lead to a state of decay, affecting urban vulnerability and users’ involvement. The research aims to develop an auxiliary tool for public administrations in planning a zero-waste future whilst enhancing the urban landscape. This study considers the perspective of virtuous management of the resource flow cycle along with evaluating implementable theoretic models, operational scenarios, and technological tools that can be integrated into a specific built environment. The first phase consisted in the definition of the involved subjects and the evaluation criteria for the impact of the service management system. The second phase includes the definition of operational strategies for virtuous and sustainable management of resource flows, intended as opportunities for the regeneration and development of the local context. The result of this research work is the elaboration and experimentation of an information system for the evaluation of the integrability of operational scenarios with the systemic, quantitative, and qualitative elements that characterize an urban landscape. The selected actions and technologies have been assessed in terms of short-term feasibility, cost-effectiveness, and local efficacy. This research work shows that many urban contexts with efficient services have been conceived as ecosystems, integrated into the landscape, driven by the synergy of institutions and operators, capable of carrying out the entire cycle from waste production to the marketing of recycled products. Our analysis shows that this issue can be effectively tackled through varied and mixed solutions; by integrating strategies, techniques, and scenarios, and by stimulating citizens’ involvement.

An Assessment of User Preferences on Artificial Pathway Lighting in Urban Parks with Special Reference to the Greater Colombo Region

Being a globally immerging concept, urban parks play a critical role in converting cities to liveable spaces, where artificial lighting directly affects the users’ night-time experience. Therefore, addressing user needs and preferences helps achieve a successful lighting design. This study was conducted at four popular urban parks in Colombo: Viharamahadevi Park, Independence Square, Urban Wetland Park and Diyatha Uyana, where the urban park users’ subjective responses towards three lighting parameters: brightness, Correlated Colour Temperature (CCT), and luminaires of the existing pathway lighting design, selected based on the appropriateness in terms of pathway lighting, and the practicality of assessing them within the chosen urban parks, were evaluated. The reasons for the said preferences were investigated under three overarching themes: perceived safety, perceived quality of light, and restorative experience. Data collection was done through a mixed methods approach under two main steps, namely the literature review survey and the case study survey. A sample of 10 participants (5 males and 5 females) were selected at each location through convenience sampling. Questionnaires were given to the users to rate their preference towards the existing pathway lighting conditions on a scale from 1 (very unsatisfied) to 5 (very satisfied). The user responses were analysed together with existing brightness levels measured using a digital lux meter, in-situ observations and photographic analysis of user behavioural patterns at case study locations, so as to further strengthen the outcomes. Aligned with literature, the user preferences were found to be directly associated with their perception of the lit environment. The results revealed that the majority of the users opted for change in the current lighting design, although they were both negatively and positively affected by it, indicating that the user needs and requirements are not effectively addressed in this regard.
 Keywords: User preference, Artificial lighting, Pathway lighting, Urban parks

A Research Paper on INTERNET INDIA

This paper reports about the ‘Internet in India’, trends of the growth of Internet in India. This research paper has done an analysis of evolution of Internet in India. Internet emphasises the gap among social groups and regions. Internet in India began in 1986 and was available only to the educational and research community. General public access to the internet began on 15 August 1995, and as of 2020 there are 718.74 million active internet users that comprise 54.29% of the population. India is still lacking internet in few parts. Our analysis also finds the correlation with the evolution of internet in India. In this research paper, we have compared the early internet days in India to the present internet days, and found that the usage has drastically increased and now there is also an internet society. We have also viewed few survey reports and found that the need is required, but it is yet to be fulfilled by government. The knowledge of Internet still to be spread widely in India, so that there can be a good reach and exposure to the world. As rural subscriber rate increases, the rural internet growth also increases. Urban Internet users mostly use wireless mode to access internet.

Assessing the urban design qualities of the urban street: A case study of Sylhet, Bangladesh

Abstract Shortage supply of space for urban infrastructure including street and pedestrian aspects remains a great challenge in the context of Bangladesh due to the rapid growth of urbanization. Here, overcrowded cities can hardly manage space for walking, the safest mood of public mobility. In Sylhet, a city in north-eastern Bangladesh, widening the vehicular street and decorating pedestrian pathways is the common tendency of street development by the local authority where the quality of urban streets is rarely investigated. In most research, walking preferences are measured via a quantitative method by addressing street comfort, traffic, and size rather than the urban design qualities of the street, i.e. a qualitative approach. Hence, the project aims to identify the user preferences for walking in the Zindabazar area, a commercial street of Sylhet considering the urban designs qualities like enclosure, legibility, human scale, transparency, complexity, coherence, linkage, and imageability. Therefore, this research applied a questionnaire survey, conducted to analyse the relation between walking preferences and urban design qualities of the commercial street. After collecting Likert scale data, Linear and multiple regression models were used to analyse it. Regression analysis was conducted to identify the relation between urban design qualities and user preferences for walking on the proposed street. The research identified that walking preferences of user are not significantly associated with all the factors of urban design qualities except legibility, transparency, and human scale. The research will help identify the poor and significant urban qualities of the street(s) which need to be modified to improve user preferences.

Future City, Digital Twinning and the Urban Realm: A Systematic Literature Review

Digitalisation and the future city paradigm are becoming a trend in recent research and practices. Literature discusses digitalisation and its applications as the main gear in the transformation to the ideal future city vision. Yet, the concept of digitalisation is articulated in many interpretations and presented in different applications in the built environment. One emerging application is digital twinning. Literature envisions the potential of digital twinning applications in the urban realm and discusses the cognitive city model and its implications on the future of our cities, its urban realm and the built environment in general. With the evolving themes on the ideal future city model, this systematic review tackles the following questions: what are the key motives and drivers of the future city paradigm; what is a city digital twin; and what are their expected applications. Additionally, how literature envisions the definition of the city users and their experience in the urban realm of the city of the future. This review article explores related literature on the themes of future city model, digital urban realm, digital twinning and city users. The main findings are: identifying key gears of the future city model in literature, exploring city digital twin conceptualization and applications and discussing concepts on the definition of city user and user experience in the city of the future.

Robust optimization of Savonius-type wind turbine deflector blades considering wind direction sensitivity and production material decrease

Savonius-type vertical axis wind turbine (SWT) has several characteristics appropriate for urban usage: low rotational speed, low noise, easy self-starting; but also has a low power coefficient. One of the methods to improve the SWT efficiency is to use fixed deflector blades, but this makes the SWT performance sensitive to wind direction. This paper performs a robust optimization of deflector blade shape, considering the whole range of wind directions. The objectives are to reduce the required production material and to maximize the annual energy production (which is related to the average power coefficient cPave). Each design efficiency is estimated using 2D CFD transient simulation with GEKO turbulence model. The results show that cPave is increased to cPave = 0.35 using an 8-blade optimized deflector (46% improvement compared to no-deflector) coupled with classical SWT rotor. The 4-blade deflector is inferior with 33% improvement (cPave = 0.32) but with 60% material reduction compared to the previous design. Application of the novel Scooplet-based design achieves a further improvement of cPave = 0.43 and cP,ave = 0.385 for 4-blade and 8-blade deflectors, respectively. A selected optimized design was evaluated using 3D CFD for various aspect ratios (Ar).

User-based fuzzy end-use modeling of indoor urban residential water demand

Stochastic models for estimating residential water demand use high-resolution field data consuming large costs and significant time. An attempt for the accurate estimation of water demand may result in its complex analytical model due to numerous factors affecting the water use event. Moreover, as the water supply system is always subjected to variations in demand, the accuracy of water demand estimation in its design can be side-lined. The water demand in residential buildings is mainly governed by the users’ characteristics and their daily schedule. In this view, the use of Fuzzy Logic can be advantageous to model the uncertainty in water demands. The presented study attempts to provide a methodology to estimate urban indoor residential water demand with the help of user-based end-use models in the absence of field data and generate various possible water demand patterns of fixtures. Usergroups were created for assuming spatial variations in water demand. Fuzzy Logic was used to develop the end-use models using data on urban users’ characteristics, their diurnal activities, and water use habits to estimate the demand characteristics of fixtures. The model may also facilitate the computation of pipe sizing in building water supply systems.

The Use of Urban Parks by Older Adults in the Context of Perceived Security.

The perception of urban greenery is determined by many aspects, including the personal security of different groups of city dwellers. The objective of this study was to investigate if there are differences between the sense of security of older adults and other groups of urban park users, and which factors play an important role in the evaluation of personal security and thus determine the use (or not) of parks. A survey questionnaire was administrated to a sample of randomly selected park users in Poland (n = 394), including seniors (s = 69). The results show statistically significant differences in security perception between respondents under the age of 60 and those over the age of 60 in the case of all questioned factors. At the same time, all of them are important for a sense of security in older adults. This knowledge is crucial for designing more inclusive and age-friendly urban parks, which should meet the needs and expectations of older adults and encourage them to engage in more activity.

Examining Source Effects on Perceptions of Fake News in Rural India

This paper presents a between-subjects design experiment with 478 people in India to investigate how rural and urban social media users perceive credible and fake posts, and how different types of sources impact their perceptions of information credibility and sharing behaviors. Our findings reveal that: (1) rural social media users were less adept in differentiating between credible and fake posts than their urban counterparts, and (2) source effects on trust and sharing intent manifested differently for urban and rural users. For example, fake posts from family members garnered greater trust among urban users but were trusted the least by rural users. In case of sharing Facebook posts, urban users were more willing to share fake posts from family, whereas, rural users were more inclined to share fake posts from journalists. Drawing on these findings, we propose design interventions to counteract fake news in low-resource environments of the Global South.

Privacy Concern Behaviour on Social Media Sites: A Comparative Analysis of Urban and Rural Users

Numerous researchers have examined various aspects of privacy concern and information-sharing behaviour for online social networking sites; few past researches stated that social media users' privacy concern behavior influenced by their demographic profile. This article attempts to analyse social networking users’ privacy concerns and information-sharing behaviours for urban and rural areas of India. It additionally investigates privacy concerns among users with distinctive levels of Internet addiction. It has been observed that are most of the respondents are susceptible to privacy infringement because of their online social media awareness. The examination finds that urban and rural users vary in their information-sharing practices and privacy adaption. Urbanites might be at more serious risk to privacy infringement and information sharing on account of their valuable data and their social media practices. Furthermore, social media users are dependent on the privacy alerts and settings available to them while sharing information on the various social media sites. Users with low social media awareness might be powerless against privacy infringement in the absence of such alerts from the site administrators. Potential implications of discoveries are given and advice for future research had been also discussed.

A modelling framework for nature-based solutions expansion planning considering the benefits to downstream urban water users

How and when to upscale and finance nature-based solutions in watersheds in order to improve downstream urban water security is a global concern. In this paper we address such challenge by providing a novel method for planning the expansion of a chosen set of nature-based solutions that couples optimization of sequential decision-making, hydrology modelling and hydroeconomics in a single modeling framework. The benefits were considered the avoided costs of water scarcity and water treatment perceived downstream. The optimal expansion schedule of decisions was then defined under the objective function of minimizing total cost. We demonstrated the framework by applying it to a set of benchmark alternative scenarios for the Sinos River watershed (Brazil). We found that the optimal schedule of nature-based solutions expansion is sensitive to the initial land use and future drivers. Treatment cost reduction was the greatest feature in some scenarios, confirming it as a strategy for addressing water quality issues of degraded watersheds. But the accounting of water scarcity cost introduced a tradeoff: expansion of nature-based solutions in well-preserved watersheds may not worth the investment. Future research may improve current limitations in scope and models without structural changes in the framework. Practical implications of this work arise from the funding of watershed payments for environmental services projects by institutions and governments, which demand evidence-based policies to support investment of public resources.

Predicting place attachment among walkers in the urban context: The role of dogs, motivations, satisfaction, past experience and setting development

Place attachment knowledge informs urban green space management to maximize positive visitor experiences. However, little is known about how place attachment differs between urban green space settings and users, particularly dog walkers or owners. This study explored place attachment and the better-known influence of variables such as motivation, satisfaction and visit frequency, as well as the understudied contributions of dog-ownership status and degree of setting development. In total, 450 on-site walkers and dog walkers in two cities and four green spaces with different levels of development were interviewed. Regression analyses revealed motivations, satisfaction and visit frequency predicted place attachment. Place attachment strength differed between walkers and dog walkers: dog walkers were more likely to have higher place identity and place dependence. Similarly, visitors to the urban green spaces with the lowest degree of development were highest on place dependence and identity. Implications and future research ideas are shared.

What urban lakes and ponds quality is about? Conciliating water quality and ecological indicators with users’ perceptions and expectations about urban lakes and ponds quality in urban areas

ABSTRACT Urban lakes and ponds (L&Ps) provide numerous ecological and social services for local populations living in urban areas. Their monitoring and management are mostly based on water quality and ecological indicators and poorly consider public preferences and expectancies related to these artificial ecosystems. Even fewer studies bring together expert indicators and public expectations to inform management objectives for urban lakes. Based on an interdisciplinary study, this paper compares an expert assessment of the ecological quality of three urban L&Ps located in the Ile-de-France area with the public perception of these lakes. This approach permits us to explore the compatibilities and incongruences between the various ways in which scientists, managers and urban users assess urban L&P quality. Based on these data, we discuss how it could be possible to define management objectives that integrate quality indicators and expect these objectives to be used in a territorial approach that might allow to obtain a better adequacy between social users’ expectations and the ecological status of these L&Ps.

How urban parks nurture eudaimonic and hedonic wellbeing: An explorative large scale qualitative study in Québec, Canada

This study investigated urban park users’ perceptions of why they use these spaces, how use affects their wellbeing, and the park qualities underlying those benefits. Interviews were conducted with 449 adult park users (M = 43.6 years old) in 20 parks across four cities in Quebec, Canada. Thematic analysis produced three themes describing global drives behind park use and its effect on wellbeing: Caring for self, Caring for children, and Caring for others. Users actively sought out hedonic wellbeing, namely through leisure, as well as eudaimonic wellbeing through connection to self or others. Implications for health promotion and urban planning are discussed.

Research on Performance Evaluation of Urban Furniture Function Design Based on Internet of Things Digitization

With the continuous improvement of modern scientific construction, urban development is moving in the direction of digitization. Under the background of digital technology of Internet of things, many cities have new challenges and opportunities in the construction of a new generation. Urban furniture design plays an important role in public areas and activity spaces. It can bring many interactive and spatial elements to people’s daily life. At the same time, the functionality and reliability of urban furniture design are also the main contents we pay attention to. How to reflect the applicability of design and evaluate the performance of products is the research content of this paper under the background of Internet of things and digitization. Firstly, it analyzes the current situation of urban furniture design and the specific needs in the digital background. This paper explores the impact of the above factors on the safety of urban furniture from the aspects of urban development, economic situation and user groups. Using Internet of things data modeling and estimation methods to analyze the data changes contained in urban furniture design. Judge the performance changes of furniture design in actual use according to the data information, and analyze the feasibility of people in use. Finally, in the big data environment, with the support of Internet of things technology, this paper studies the sharing function in urban furniture design, and evaluates the feedback effect of shared urban furniture. The results show that urban furniture design under the digital background of Internet of things reflects good feasibility and applicability in modern urban construction. Digital urban furniture has gradually become a new symbol of a city. This paper uses data mining to obtain and analyze the data in the process of urban furniture design, and realizes the standardized processing of user behavior data. It not only meets people’s daily needs and the needs of intelligent equipment, but also strengthens the importance of urban furniture design and use in modern urban construction. Compared with the traditional Internet, the Internet of things can combine the wireless transmission network with the actual objects to achieve the purpose of accurately transmitting information.

Impact of COVID-19 Pandemic on Customer Satisfaction and Loyalty Index for Public Transport

The COVID-19 outbreak is a global pandemic that is now widespread across the world. Malaysia government has implemented the Movement Control Order (MCO) or so-called massive restriction in Malaysia. The restriction amongst others includes that the public is advised to stay and work from home. Only the essential services are allowed to operate at capacity within the stipulated Standard Operating Procedures (SOP). Public transport operation is considered as essential services that need to provide people with mobility and access to employment, community resources, medical care, and recreational opportunities in communities. This study aims to identify the impact of COVID-19 pandemic on urban public transport in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. The objectives include: to determine the change of ridership trends, to measure the Customer Satisfaction Index (SCI) and Loyalty Index (CLI) in taking consideration of the current COVID-19 SOP provided by public transport operators. The questionnaire survey was distributed via online and received 401 respondents. The results show significant decreases in ridership and new mobility patterns emerge from public transport to private cars. The COVID-19 pandemic also impacted the CSI and CLI value for both public transport services-bus and rail within the urban public transport users. The highlights of public transport users' concern on using the public transport during this pandemic will be discussed.

Personality and Walkability: Predicting Walking Behaviour in Urban Settings using the Higher Order Factors of the Big Five amongst Malaysian Adults

Walkability has now been a popular policy to be adopted in the city centre as traffic congestion and inefficient public transportation have affected the mobility of the urban users prior to the pandemic. The pandemic has paved more efforts to improve the design of urban spaces to increase walkability in the cities. In the attempt to predict walking activity amongst Malaysian adults psychologically, a personality test using Big Five Aspect Scales (BFAS) was conducted in relation to individual walking frequency in urban settings. Structural equation modelling (SEM) was used to analyze the predicting capacity of personality constructs control by general intelligence in relation to walking behaviour. The results show that the higher order meta-traits of the big five personality traits which are Stability (Neuroticism, Agreeableness, and Conscientiousness) and Plasticity (Extraversion and Openness to Experience) can be used as a reliable predictor for individual walking behaviour. As hypothesized, walking behaviour amongst Malaysians was characterized by reversed Stability (r = -.58) and high Plasticity (r = .76). The implication suggested the necessity of cognitive navigability and design predictability metrics of urban design cognitive performance in influencing the psychological factor of walking behaviour