Integrating Pedestrian Circulation with Proposed Rapid Transit Route: Design Proposal of a Skywalk for Smart Dhaka

Abstract

The average traffic speed of Dhaka, one of the most densely populated megacities in the world, has fallen to 6 km per hour according to the World Bank, which is almost similar to the usual walking speed and this congestion eats up 3.2 million working hours per day. Till now, a lot of policy measures and plans have been taken and some of the developmental works, i.e. the construction of MRT (Mass Rapid Transit), BRT (Bus Rapid Transit), Elevated Expressway, numerous flyover, etc., are in progress, but the proposals barely accommodated the pedestrian mobility issue, that needs to be taken into consideration. Against this backdrop, this research conducts an extensive field survey in the New Market area, one of the busiest shopping areas, where there is a proposal for an elevated BRT line. The land use, traffic, pedestrian behavior, street vendor’s information, etc., are surveyed. The impact of the proposed BRT line and the station is analyzed by reviewing the proposed design by the government and then connecting the literature survey with the field survey. Then an integrated elevated skywalk below the BRT line is proposed which has the possibility to minimize traffic congestion and ensure a safe pedestrian walking. The proposed skywalk accommodates energy-efficient and pollution reduction measures. The wide skywalk may promote art and culture through the design strategy. The proposed design of the skywalk dovetailed with urban life requirements will certainly contribute in achieving certain SDG goals which will lead towards a smart Dhaka.