The Applicability Study Of A Dense Road Network, Small Block System In The Central District Of Kunming Chengong New Town

In recent years, traditional spatial planning pattern characterized by " distantly spaced, non-human scale road network, super blocks " has been widely criticized, and the planning pattern of "a dense, human scale network of streets, small blocks" based on the New Urbanism planning concepts is applied in new town planning and construction in China. Taking the central district of the Chenggong new town plan as a case study, the thesis revisits the disadvantages of traditional super block planning pattern. A detailed analysis of the US city of Portland’s planning pattern is made to illustrate the key technical features of small block urban planning pattern. The Portland case is then taken as a reference to the practice of the central district of Chenggong new town planning to understand the rationality of relevant specifications such as road design and urban planning in China.Taking a problem driven approach, the study first identified the problems in the planning of the central district of Chenggong new town. Then comparisons were made with the practices in Portland、New York city and other Chinese cities, taking the actual planning and implementation constraints of the central district of Chenggong new town in consideration. Using a unified framework, the study explored various aspects from road network planning and street design to land use and urban design. The applicability of small block planning pattern in the central district of Kunming Chenggong new town is analyzed and improvement recommendations are given.Finally, the research result is reflected under a wider scope. Some suggestions for other Chinese cities using the small block planning pattern are given. Research limitation and future improvement are discussed in the end.