Abstract:
Sustainable urbanism has encouraged and led planners and designers to shape and transform the urban environment, so as to provide people with convenience, comfort, safety and sense of belonging. In the meantime, universal design principles, which try to give people equal, comfortable use of urban areas, by increasing accessibility, walkability, bikeability and usability, provide the foundation to implement the objectives of sustainable urbanism. This research dissertation investigates the current planning and design problems in Auckland Central Business District (CBD)-which have contributed to the pedestrian-motor and cyclist-motor crashes, low accessibility especially the disable access and fear of crime. It then goes on to give recommendations and responses from planning and design perspectives, by using leading sustainable urbanism values and applying universal design principles. Firstly, the literature review introduces the important sustainable urbanism values, ideas and important concepts, universal design and its successful application, and the built environment’s role in this dissertation. Secondly, this dissertation articulates why it is necessary to transform some problematic built environment features whilst applying universal design principles, given the rapid population increase, the ethnic and age diversity, and severe pedestrian-motor and cyclist-motor crashes in Auckland CBD. This is supported by the two originally produced maps-“Historical Pattern of Pedestrian Crashes in Auckland CBD Map” and “Historical Pattern of Cyclists Cashes in Auckland CBD Map”, which clearly illustrate that Queen Street, Victoria Street, Wellesley Street, Albert Street, Elliott Street and Wyndham Street are the most dangerous streets for pedestrians, and that Albert Street and Quay Street are the most dangerous streets for cyclists. Thirdly, this dissertation explains how pedestrians and cyclists feel safe in Auckland CBD, what the built environment features in it are, and what recommendations can be given in context of sustainable urbanism and universal design. Finally, the analysis and discussion concludes what are the typical built environment problems for pedestrians and cyclists in Auckland CBD, where they are, the solutions and planning/design responses to these problems.
