RAR -804

TOWN PLANNING

URBAN PATTERNS
(Road Network)

Sumit Pal
4th year Gen-3
LINEAR CITY PLANNING
Linear city planning, also known as corridor development, involves concentrating urban development along a narrow, elongated
strip of land, typically following a transportation corridor like a river, coastline, or highway. This pattern offers both advantages
and disadvantages, requiring careful consideration for implementation.

• Linear city proposed by Arturo Soria y Mata.

Examples:
• Mumbai, India: The city's development largely follows the west coast of India, with major infrastructure and commercial
areas concentrated along the coastline.
• Miami, Florida, USA: The city stretches along the Atlantic coast, with major transportation routes and high-rise
development concentrated in a linear fashion
Advantages:
Efficient land use: Linear cities can maximize land utilization by concentrating development within a defined area,
minimizing urban sprawl. This can be particularly beneficial in areas with limited land resources or strong
environmental protection policies.
Infrastructure concentration: By focusing development in a linear corridor, infrastructure such as water, sewage, and
transportation systems can be efficiently planned and shared, reducing cost and maintenance complexity.
Accessibility: Linear cities often develop alongside transportation corridors, providing residents with direct access to
major transportation routes and potential for multimodal transportation option.
Disadvantages:
Limited flexibility: The linear layout can be inflexible and challenging to adapt to existing topographical features or
integrate with future development needs.
Dependence on transportation: Residents often rely heavily on the primary transportation corridor for commuting
and accessing services, potentially leading to car-dependent development and congestion.
Limited local interaction: The linear layout might discourage interaction and community building within districts,
potentially leading to feelings of isolation.
Environmental concerns: Linear development along coastlines or rivers can pose environmental threats like increased
pollution and disruption of ecological balance.
• Grid Pattern: This is one of the oldest and most common road
patterns, characterized by a network of intersecting streets that form
a grid-like layout. Grid patterns facilitate easy navigation and provide
efficient access to different parts of the city. Examples include the grid
systems found in many North American cities like New York City and
Chicago.
Advantages:

• Efficient navigation: Easy to understand and navigate, with predictable and regular intersections.
• Land use efficiency: Maximizes the use of land for development, creating square or rectangular
blocks ideal for standardized buildings and infrastructure.
• Traffic flow: Facilitates efficient traffic flow in both directions due to the straight and
interconnected streets.

Disadvantages:

• Monotonous design: Can be visually unappealing and lack character compared to organic layouts.

• Pedestrian safety: Frequent intersections can create safety concerns for pedestrians, especially
with high traffic volume.
• Limited flexibility: Adapting to existing topography or unique needs can be challenging due to the
rigid structure.
• Radial Pattern: In this pattern, roads radiate outward from a central
point or points, often forming concentric circles or spokes. Radial
patterns are typically seen in cities with a centralized core and can
facilitate efficient movement to and from the center. Examples include
cities like Paris with its radial avenues emanating from landmarks like
the Arc de Triomphe.
Advantages:

• Direct access: Enables efficient movement from the city center to outlying areas due to the
radiating main roads.
• Traffic management: Provides dedicated routes for high-volume traffic, potentially reducing
congestion in central areas.
• Flexibility: Can be adapted to various topographical features and integrated with existing
development.

Disadvantages:

• Circuitous travel: Can be time-consuming to travel between destinations not located on the main
radial roads.

• Congestion hotspots: Traffic might concentrate on the main arteries, leading to congestion near
the center.
• Development limitations: Can limit development opportunities in areas not directly connected by
the radial roads.
• Ring Road: Also known as a beltway or orbital road, a ring road
encircles a city, providing a circumferential route for traffic bypassing
the city center. Ring roads help alleviate congestion within the urban
core by diverting through traffic around the city. Examples include the
M25 around London and the Boulevard Périphérique in Paris.
Advantages:
Enhanced efficiency: This hybrid approach combines the strengths of both patterns. The radial arms enable efficient movement
from the city center to outlying areas, while the grid system facilitates efficient local traffic flow and land use within districts.
Improved accessibility: The grid system ensures predictable and easy navigation within neighborhoods, making it easier for
pedestrians and cyclists to get around. Additionally, the radial roads provide direct access to the central area, improving
accessibility for residents in outlying areas.
Flexibility: This hybrid layout allows for greater adaptability to existing topography and historical development patterns
compared to a strictly radial or grid layout.
Potential for sustainable development: By promoting mixed-use development within the grid districts and prioritizing pedestrian
and cycling infrastructure, this type of planning can contribute to a more sustainable city environment.
Disadvantages:
Complexity in design and implementation: Creating a seamless and functional hybrid layout requires careful planning and
coordination, potentially increasing initial development costs.
Potential for traffic congestion: While the grid facilitates local traffic flow, congestion points can still occur at intersections
with the radial roads, especially near the city center.
Balancing efficiency with aesthetics: Striking a balance between the functional efficiency of the grid and the visual appeal of a
more organic layout can be challenging.
Limited public space: Depending on the specific implementation, the focus on efficient land use within the grid can potentially
come at the cost of adequate public green spaces or plazas.
Hexagonal Pattern City Planning:
• While rarely implemented and considered more of a theoretical concept, the
hexagonal pattern in city planning offers intriguing
• possibilities. Here's a breakdown of its potential advantages and disadvantages:
• Advantages:
• Efficient land use: The hexagonal shape minimizes wasted space and allows for a
compact, yet spacious, layout. This can be beneficial for maximizing development
potential in areas with limited land resources.
• Reduced travel distance: The hexagonal layout offers multiple, direct routes for
any origin-destination pair within the city, potentially reducing travel distances and
travel times compared to other patterns like the grid.
• Improved traffic flow: Hexagons naturally facilitate a multi-directional flow of
traffic, potentially reducing congestion at individual intersections compared to
traditional right-angle turns.
• Flexible development: The modular nature of hexagons allows for adaptable
development and expansion in various directions, potentially accommodating future
growth and diverse needs.
• Sustainability potential: The compact layout promotes walkability and cycling,
which can contribute to a more sustainable urban environment and reduce reliance
on personal cars.
Disadvantages:
Complexity of implementation: Implementing a hexagonal pattern from scratch would be a major
undertaking, requiring significant infrastructure investment and potentially encountering
challenges in integrating with existing development.
Unfamiliar layout: The non-traditional hexagonal structure might be unfamiliar to residents and
could present challenges in navigating and visualizing the city compared to familiar grid or radial
patterns.
Limited existing examples: The lack of real-world case studies makes it difficult to predict the
practical challenges and potential inefficiencies that might arise in actual implementation.
Potential for increased construction costs: The unique angles and shapes of hexagons could
potentially complicate land acquisition and construction processes, leading to increased costs
compared to simpler layouts.
Unproven social and economic impact: The social and economic implications of living in a
hexagonally planned city are largely unknown and require further research
Examples:
Masdar City, United Arab Emirates: This planned city incorporates some hexagonal elements in its
street network, particularly in specific districts, alongside other geometric shapes like squares and
circles.
Ocean Spiral: This theoretical design by Shimizu Corporation envisions a self-sustaining, floating
city with a hexagonal base and a spiral structure rising above it.