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The influence of urban design on outdoor thermal comfort in the hot, humid city of Colombo, Sri Lanka

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Abstract

The outdoor environment is deteriorating in many tropical cities due to rapid urbanization. This leads to a number of problems related to health and well-being of humans and also negatively affects social and commercial outdoor activities. The creation of thermally comfortable microclimates in urban environments is therefore very important. This paper discusses the influence of street-canyon geometry on outdoor thermal comfort in Colombo, Sri Lanka. Five sites with different urban geometry, ground cover, and distance from the sea were studied during the warmest season. The environmental parameters affecting thermal comfort, viz. air temperature, humidity, wind speed, and solar radiation, were measured, and the thermal comfort was estimated by calculating the physiologically equivalent temperature (PET). The thermal comfort is far above the assumed comfort zone due to the combination of intense solar radiation, high temperatures, and low wind speeds, especially on clear days. The worst conditions were found in wide streets with low-rise buildings and no shade trees. The most comfortable conditions were found in narrow streets with tall buildings, especially if shade trees were present, as well as in areas near the coast where the sea breeze had a positive effect. In order to improve the outdoor comfort in Colombo, it is suggested to allow a more compact urban form with deeper street canyons and to provide additional shade through the use of trees, covered walkways, pedestrian arcades, etc. The opening up of the city’s coastal strip would allow the sea breeze to penetrate further into the city.

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Notes

  1. Based on measurements from Colombo Meteorological Station 1970–2004. The station is located in a low-density, fashionable, residential neighborhood with significant green cover.

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Acknowledgements

We wish to thank the Swedish International Development Co-operation Agency (SIDA) (support to EJ) and the Ministry of Environment and Natural Resources, Sri Lanka (support to RE under the “Climate Change Enabling Activity Project,” Grant No: 03/06/253/64) for financial support; the owners of premises in which measurement stations were located, and the Department of Meteorology, Colombo, for providing detailed official weather data. Digitized land-cover information was provided by the Survey Department of Sri Lanka. The help provided by Mr. P.K.S. Mahanama, Department of Town and Country Planning, University of Moratuwa, Sri Lanka (digital images) and Ms. K.P.C. Kothalawala of the Department of Architecture, University of Moratuwa, Sri Lanka (urban morphology information in CAD file format) is gratefully acknowledged. The manuscript was proof read by Margaret Gordon and Melanie Emmanuel. Line drawings were produced by Mattias Rückert.

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  1. Housing Development and Management (HDM), Lund University, P.O. Box 118, SE-221 00, Lund, Sweden

    Erik Johansson

  2. Department of Architecture, University of Moratuwa, Moratuwa, 10400, Sri Lanka

    Rohinton Emmanuel

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  1. Erik Johansson
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  2. Rohinton Emmanuel
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Correspondence to Erik Johansson.

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Johansson, E., Emmanuel, R. The influence of urban design on outdoor thermal comfort in the hot, humid city of Colombo, Sri Lanka. Int J Biometeorol 51, 119–133 (2006). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00484-006-0047-6

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00484-006-0047-6

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