A Strategic Approach to Activating Multi-level Public Space in Neighborhoods Along Urban Expressways

Abstract

Over the past 30 years, the automobile-led development of medium-to-large sized cities in China has been dependent on the construction of high-speed transportation infrastructure. These large-scale express transportation systems have created landscapes where infrastructure forms the main arteries of urban and economic development. However, these closed, cross-border transportation systems mostly pass through urban centers, resulting in communication gaps between neighborhoods. Furthermore, they act as linear barriers that restrict the movement of urban residents and impede the internal communication within communities and the formation of inter-community social bonds. In order to transform infrastructure from ‘grey’ to ‘green’, this research proposes the strategy of a multi-level public space system which utilizes urban landscapes to promote urban culture. This study examines the expressways, bridges and neighboring spaces connecting Nanpu Bridge and Zhangjiang footbridge in Pudong as case studies to conceive a multi-level system design. The strategy addresses neighboring communities severed by transportation, the narrow spaces compressed by grey infrastructure and the available spaces under bridges to propose a “multi-level” landscape strategy which is flexible, minimalistic in approach and non-invasive. The implementation of this strategy helps communities achieve connectedness, provides new sights and experiences for perceiving urban culture and the visual landscape, and becomes a public open space with both transportation and social functions.