How We Move: an Overview

The most intriguing thing to me about architecture is circulation. How architecture not only helps us move, but allows us to realize ways of movement never before thought possible, offers endless opportunities for excitement.

Humans move in three distinct (but not always separate) conditions: land, air and water. (DUKW ("Duck") boats allow travel on water and land without changing vehicles.) Within these three conditions, four main modes of travel exist: the airplane, the ship (or boat), the train and the car. Within each of these modes, various sub-modes exist, each with their own specific circulatory needs.

 

The diagram above shows the different basic hub types for each mode of transportation (right column). The left column shows how fundamentally these hubs are linked to one another. 

The Airplane

The airplane's hub is the airport. When in the sky, the airplane's movement limited to a series of planes (as in, a horizontal axis) which it moves between gradually and carefully. Within that plane (axis), the aircraft's movement is only restricted by the capacity of its tail. Still, this only describes an aircraft's movement from one hub to another. The airport is most important to the human, as it is the primary place of interaction. At the airport, we get off and on the aircraft, or change between one aircraft to another. Aircraft are not capable of exchanging passengers mid-air; thus the airport facilitates the transition. The aircraft moved in and out of the airport by the runway which, compared to the craft's movement in the air, is much more restricted, as there is only one way in and out. 

LaGuardia Airport in New York City has two runways, but an aircraft can only use one runway at a time. The craft enters at one end, and leaves from the other. The entrance and exit are precise and rigidly directional. The airplane is the anomaly in that it uses both land and air in its movement.

The Ship/Boat

Ships move about on the water much as an airplane does in the air, but without the freedom of vertical movement (unless aided by a lock). Without physical obstruction to conform their movement, ships may travel in any (horizontal) direction they please, as enabled by their rudder. 

The dock, or pier, is more forgiving than the airport, but it also implies a "correct" way of entering and exiting.

The nature of the pier implies that ships pull up alongside, paralleling their edges. A ship may enter backwards or forwards, but one long side must touch that of the pier.

The Train

Compared to the previous two modes, the movement of the train is incredibly rigid. A train may only move on a track. A train's path may change elevation, but the train car itself cannot move up or down.

The train station is where we get on and off and move between trains. 

As they approach the station, the tracks diverge to individual platforms where each train exchanges passengers. Again, the movement of the train car is specifically prescribed to the track and the platform.

The Car

The car moves in a way that is only minimally prescribed by the vehicle itself. Cars move in a way determined by roads and legislation. We move in and out of them by bringing them to rest at a designated location. These locations, while apparent and distinct, are often merged quite closely to the places of movement. 

Two conditions are present in the image of Giant Eagle Squirrel Hill. The parking lot, which is the vehicle destination, is set away from the street, but has designated paths of circulation within. Second is the street parking which lines flanks the lanes of moving traffic. Here the parking is secondary to the street as circulation, but still highly visible.

Midsemester Submission

Methodology (Take Two)

This revised version of my methodology is a conceptual map of my intended process. I am studying types of urban street interventions, mainly in Europe and some in the United States. Naturally, there are thousands of examples of these interventions in the last five years alone. I will tease out a common denominator between the projects and, after identifying the parameters of my site, adapt and apply an intervention based on the successful characteristics of the cases I study.

1 + 3 + 9 (Take Two)

1
Our urban streets need to be reclaimed from the isolating automobile traffic to become hubs of pedestrian activity.

3
The decision made mid-century to fund the growth of the automobile has stymied the development of meaningful walkable places. Pedestrian movement is relegated to utilitarian sidewalks which mount increasing pressure on the adjacent storefronts. Punctures appear in the facade where the tension of interior activity begins to break through.

9

Views of Strøget, the main shopping street in
Copenhagen, 1950s (left) and 1995 (right)
[from New City Spaces by Jan Gehl and Lars Gemzøe]

The United States is not alone in its divisive attitude towards cars and people on its streets. Europe also struggles with the encroachment of vehicles into the pedestrian realm. Copenhagen's medieval city plazas were, in the mid- twentieth century, dense car parks and its inner city streets clogged with vehicular traffic. In 1962 the streets were reclaimed from the automobile traffic that choked the air and the streets and now the city center, while still accessible by car, thrives with vibrant pedestrian activity.  Oslo is redeveloping its previously industrial waterfront into a bustling residential and recreational area that is reachable but not penetrable by cars. The water's edge sees an active streets cafe and restaurant scene that, with heat lamps and fleece blankets, pushes the comfort zone well into November and March. Every Sunday from April to November, Boston's Memorial Drive closes to vehicular traffic and promotes active pedestrian activity. This American example of accommodation for pedestrian movement encourages better integration of people and cars. The American will not give up the automobile and neither should be forced to; the automobile will be with us for many more years.  By providing more compelling and desirable walkable streets, Americans might see the street as not only a route to get from here to there but a place to be absorbed and enjoyed. 

Plan of Attack (first draft)

First semester process diagram

In order to produce my thesis, I must spend the first semester thoroughly researching both my site, Squirrel Hill in Pittsburgh, and my case study cities of Oslo, Copenhagen and Stockholm. The Scandinavian studies will produce a typology and a set of guidelines to apply to the site. Through the synthesis of the typological guideline and its application and tailoring to fit the unique conditions of Squirrel Hill I will develop a compelling program which I will achieve in the second semester.

1+3+9 Take One

1. Urban streets should be a place of connectivity and foster community on what would otherwise be an isolated path.

+

3. The city street as we know it serves as a utilitarian method of transit. It is formatted to favor the automobile and chronically ignores the needs of the pedestrian by segregating this user to the sidewalk. We can make our cities more enjoyable by designing pleasing and entertaining street spaces for the walking citizen.

+

9. The American urban experience has been hijacked by the automobile. The need to accommodate increased vehicular traffic threatens the pedestrian heartbeat of the city. In areas where urbanity struggles to thrive, cars stymie the growth of walkable, enjoyable streetscapes.

European cities, which developed long before the advent of the automobile, grew with the needs of its pedestrians. The European city street environment enhances the walker's experience by providing places for pause, breaking up a usually continuous path of movement. On streets such as the Champs Elysses in Paris and Strøget in Copenhagen, the street becomes the destination for the pedestrian.

The car's existence will persist for many years to come, but we can resist the detriment of its streets. The future of better city streets lies in the increasing migration of its citizens towards the urban environment. By adapting European sensibilities toward urban street space, America's city streets can fulfill the promise of the urban experience.

Balance - Visual response

Section of University of Lund (Sweden) superimposed over photograph

Drawings build architecture. Architects make models as part of the design process and as a showpiece for clients, but never to be used in the actual construction process. The ideal and the reality must meet somewhere in the middle for the endeavor to be truly successful.