Contribution to the Environmental sustainability by improving the walking behaviour through neighbourhoods’ design with special reference to developing countries

¹ Assistant Professor, College of Architecture and Design, Alghurair University, Dubai
² Professor, Civil Engineering, New Papua Guinea university, New Papua Guinea
³ Assistant Professor, Department of civil Engineering, British University in Dubai, Dubai

^∗ Corresponding author: yasmeen.gul@agu.ac.ae

Abstract

The neighbourhood design (ND) factors such as land-use mix (LUM), street connectivity and housing density have the potential to enhance the walking. A limited number of studies have investigated the association of ND factors with walking in developing countries. Therefore, the objective of this study is to compare the ND factors and investigate their association with walking. The LUM, street connectivity and housing density were measured objectively while walking was calculated subjectively (n-1,042adults). Independent sample t-test and Binary logistic analysis has been used to investigate the comparison and association between ND factors and walking. The results show that two out of three ND indicators are significantly different in both types of neighbourhoods and have positive association with walking Therefore, it can be concluded that, for the sake of walking in developing countries, the neighbourhoods should have mix of different land-uses and well-connected streets rather than sealing the neighbourhoods with walls.