From Preferences of Social Groups to Planning and Management Solutions of Green Spaces in Bucharest

Abstract

The critical role of green in cities is widely considered to have positive implications for health and for providing a complete set of ecosystem services in cities. Highly linked to the concept of ecosystem services is the role of accessibility to those ecosystems and places providing the services. However, a gap often exists between the presence of existing greenspaces and the demands and preferences for accessibility of different social groups (e.g., children and elderly people). This work evaluates the preferences of social groups regarding green spaces in the light of the important role that green and blue spaces play in Bucharest. The users’ preferences have been assessed through the administration of a questionnaire survey to evaluate the level of park accessibility and to investigate the factors that influence the preferences of the social groups visiting the green spaces. The results obtained from an analysis of the responses provided are then interpreted to define planning scenarios aimed at increasing existing features of the green and blue spaces, or including additional features, according to the requests/preferences/issues raised by the users.