Pedestrian System Planning for High Rise Buildings

The high rise is the critical test of the viability of the urban system, using land at a focal point of regional identity, loading transportation services at their point of convergence and maximum traffic, and creating multiple environmental impacts. Pedestrian systems have become an important factor in high rise planning because the high rise concentrates the population of a small city within a limited ground space already intensively utilized. There is an expanding awareness of the relationship of the pedestrian system to the form and function of the city, since walking is the linkage between all elements of the city, its transportation, buildings, and open spaces. Instead of treating this as an added development burden, designers and planners should recognize this as an opportunity to humanize the urban center and to improve its quality of life by enhancing its image, vitality, and viability.