Walk towards sustainability: Improved neighbourhood street connectivity helps

Walking is important for human health, and street connectivity has been considered as an important attribute to enhance walking. Although street connectivity has been investigated widely in this field of study, the effects of street connectivity on walking have not been investigated with gated neighborhoods’ perspective. Therefore, this study’s objectives are comparing connectivity in gated and non-gated neighborhoods and investigating the association of connectivity with total walking in developing countries. Space Syntax (axial map) has been used to calculate connectivity in 16 neighborhoods, of Karachi, Pakistan. Neighborhood Physical Activity Questionnaire (NPAQ) has been used (n= 1,042 adults) to calculate total walking. Independent sample t-test has been used to check the differences in connectivity and total walking between gated and non-gated neighborhoods, while cross-tabulation (gamma test) has been used to analyze the association. The results show that connectivity and total walking are higher in non-gated neighborhoods than gated neighborhoods, and there is a small but significant association between connectivity and total walking. It indicates that total walking may be correlated to connectivity, therefore, it should be taken into account while designing neighborhoods

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

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

The association between the perception of crime and walking in gated and non-gated neighbourhoods of Asian developing countries

It has been reported in the literature that the perception of crime at the neighbourhood level inversely affects the walking behaviour of individuals. On the other hand, the gated neighbourhoods are considered safe from crime, however, there is a lack of research on the association of the perception of crime and walking in gated neighbourhoods. Therefore, the objectives of the study reported in this paper were to investigate the association between the perception of crime and walking in gated and non-gated neighbourhoods. A questionnaire was used to collect the data on walking and the perception of crime in 16 neighbourhoods of Karachi Pakistan, 8 out of which were gated. Independent sample t-test and gamma tests were used for the data analysis. The results show that although there is a lower perception of crime in the gated neighbourhoods, yet the inhabitants of gated neighbourhoods engage in less physical activity comprising of walking. In spite of a greater perception of crime in non-gated neighbourhoods, higher values of walking were reported by the residents of those neighbourhoods. Therefore, it has been concluded that there does not exist a definite relationship between the perception of crime and walking behaviour at the neighbourhood level and the perceived safety from crime claimed by the proponents of the gated neighbourhoods does not encourage walking among the residents

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

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.</jats:p

Walk towards sustainability: Improved neighbourhood street connectivity helps

Walking is important for human health, and street connectivity has been considered as an important attribute to enhance walking. Although street connectivity has been investigated widely in this field of study, the effects of street connectivity on walking have not been investigated with gated neighborhoods’ perspective. Therefore, this study’s objectives are comparing connectivity in gated and non-gated neighborhoods and investigating the association of connectivity with total walking in developing countries. Space Syntax (axial map) has been used to calculate connectivity in 16 neighborhoods, of Karachi, Pakistan. Neighborhood Physical Activity Questionnaire (NPAQ) has been used (n= 1,042 adults) to calculate total walking. Independent sample t-test has been used to check the differences in connectivity and total walking between gated and non-gated neighborhoods, while cross-tabulation (gamma test) has been used to analyze the association. The results show that connectivity and total walking are higher in non-gated neighborhoods than gated neighborhoods, and there is a small but significant association between connectivity and total walking. It indicates that total walking may be correlated to connectivity, therefore, it should be taken into account while designing neighborhoods.</jats:p

The effects of physical activity facilities on vigorous physical activity in gated and non-gated neighborhoods

Physical activity is important for health and it is believed that the availability of physical activity facilities (PAF) within the neighborhood encourages physical activity, especially vigorous physical activity (VPA). The main purpose of providing PAF, particularly in gated neighborhoods, is to encourage physical activity. However, there are few studies that investigate the differences of PAF in gated and non-gated neighborhoods and the effect of providing PAF on VPA in developing countries. Therefore, the objectives of this study are to compare PAF and VPA in gated and non-gated neighborhoods and to investigate the association between PAF and VPA in developing countries with special reference to Karachi, Pakistan. A subjective method (IPAQ-Short) was used to calculate VPA in a week (n = 1042 adults), while PAF was measured through aerial maps and ground observations within 1 km 2 areas of gated and non-gated neighborhoods. An independent sample t-test was used to compare PAF and VPA in gated and non-gated neighborhoods, whereas Gama tests were used to investigate the association of PAF with VPA. Results show that PAF and VPA are significantly higher in gated neighborhoods than non-gated neighborhoods. The results also show that 42.3% of people get >600 MET-minutes in a week if the number of PAF is >6 in a 1 km 2 neighborhood area. It can be concluded that future neighborhoods should have an appropriate number of PAF for making residents as physically active as possible

Effect of kenaf fiber in reinforced concrete slab

The effect of kenaf fibers in reinforced concrete slab with different thickness is discusses and presented in this paper. Kenaf fiber is a type of natural fiber and is added in the reinforced concrete slab to improve the structure strength and ductility. For this study, three types of mixtures were prepared with fiber volume fraction of 0%, 1% and 2%, respectively. The design compressive strength considered was 20 MPa. Six cubes were prepared to be tested at 7th and 28th day. A total of six reinforced concrete slab with two variances of thickness were also prepared and tested under four-point bending test. The differences in the thickness is to study the potential of kenaf fiber to serve as part of shear reinforcement in reinforced concrete slab that was design to fail in shear. It was observed that, addition of kenaf fiber in reinforced concrete slab improves the flexural strength and ductility of the reinforced concrete slab. In the slab with reduction in thickness, the mode of failure change from brittle to ductile with the inclusion of kenaf fiber

Measuring the differences of neighbourhood environment and physical activity in gated and non-gated neighbourhoods in Karachi, Pakistan

Neighbourhood environment (NE) is important for physical activity (PA); however, no studies have compared the NE and PA in gated neighbourhoods, especially in developing countries. Therefore, the objective of this study is to compare NE and PA between gated and non-gated neighbourhoods. Objective and subjective (n = 1042) methods and independent sample t-tests were used. Results show that all the indicators are significantly different except housing density. Vigorous Physical Activity (VPA) is higher in gated but walking is higher in non-gated neighbourhoods. Therefore, it can be concluded that gating can reduce walking habits of people living in gated neighbourhoods in developing countries. © 2018, © 2018 Informa UK Limited, trading as Taylor & Francis Group