Patrones de
comportamiento peatonal en relación a la calidad del espacio público en el
borde del Centro Histórico de Cuenca-Ecuador
Karina Alexandra Cherrez Rodas. [1], =
Myrian
Alexandra Larco BenÃtez. [2] &
Fredy
Rafael Llulluna Llumiquinga. [3]
Recibido: 19-11-2020 / Revisado: 16-12-2020 /Aceptado: 12-01-2021/
Publicado: 05-02-2021
Introduction.
Public space is important in the architecture of cities; however, since the
20th century, it has lost its prominence. Also, it has presented a decrease=
in
the performance of social activities due to the appearance of certain
architectural typologies. In this sense, the study of users of public space
allows us to understand their needs and diagnose future urban interventions.
Cuenca was declared as Cultural Heritage Site by UNESCO. "El
Barranco" which is the edge of the Historical Center of Cuenca and a m=
ajor
connector with the new planning area, is an elementary setting for social
relations. Objective. Determine the influence of the quality of publ=
ic
space on pedestrians’ behavior patterns. Methodology. The research=
was
quantitative, descriptive in nature, carrying out each study point of
observations of pedestrian dynamics for two weeks and using a data collecti=
on
form, surveys were applied to 240 users who frequent the stairways and 3337
forms were obtained. Results. Through the study of five strategic po=
ints
of "El Barranco", it was determined that the quality of its public
space is not good enough and this has provoked that the use of its stairway=
s is
mostly devoted for everyday activities rather than social ones. There is ve=
ry
little motivation to develop social activities. It was also found that the =
age
group, nationality, and ethnicity influence on the behavior patterns of
pedestrians. Of all the pedestr=
ians
who pass through the study points, it was determined that only 20% carry out
social activities, 24% optional activities and 56% only use them as connect=
ion
points to their daily activities.
Keywords:
Behavior patte=
rns;
pedestrian zones; connection points; public space.
Resumen.
Introducción. El espacio público es importante en la arquitectura de las ciudades=
; sin
embargo, desde el siglo XX ha perdido su protagonismo. Además, se ha dado =
un
descenso en la realización de actividades sociales debido a la aparición =
de
ciertas tipologÃas arquitectónicas. En este sentido, el estudio de los us=
uarios
en el espacio público permite comprender sus necesidades y diagnosticar fu=
turas
intervenciones urbanas. Cuenca fue declarada Patrimonio Cultural de la
Humanidad por la UNESCO. “El Barranco†es el borde del Centro Históric=
o de
Cuenca y es un importante conector con la zona de nueva planificación lo q=
ue lo
convierte en un escenario elemental de relaciones sociales. Objetivo. Determinar la influencia de la calidad del espacio público en los
patrones de comportamiento de sus peatones. MetodologÃa. La investigación fue de carácter cuantitativa, de tipo descriptiva
realizando cada punto de estudio observaciones de la dinámica peatonal dur=
ante
dos semanas y mediante una ficha de recolección de datos se aplicaron encu=
estas
a 240 usuarios que frecuentan las escalinatas y se obtuvieron 3337 formular=
ios.
Resultados. A través del estudio de cinco puntos estratégicos de “El Ba=
rrancoâ€
se determinó que la calidad de su espacio público no es buena y esto ha
incidido a que sus escalinatas se usen mayormente para actividades necesari=
as,
y que exista muy poca motivación para desarrollar actividades sociales. Ta=
mbién
se encontró que el grupo etario, la nacionalidad y el grupo étnico influy=
en en
los patrones de comportamiento de los peatones. De todos los peatones que
transitan por los puntos de estudio se determinó que solo el 20% realiza
actividades sociales, 24% actividades opcionales y el 56% solo los utiliza =
como
puntos de conexión a sus actividades cotidianas.
Palabras claves:
Patrones de comportamiento; zonas peatonales; puntos de conexión; espacio
público.
Introduction.
Throughout history, the importance of public space=
in
the architecture of cities has been evidenced (Gamboa 2002),(Gehl 2014). Du=
ring
the 19th century, the pedestrian played an important role in the design of
public spaces. However, in the twentieth century, the automobile emerged as=
one
of the important issues in people's daily lives (Panagopoulos et al. 2018),=
and
caused the city turned into an automated area, a kind of zoned production
machine which made it lose the essence of its urban spaces (Gamboa 2002). I=
n this
regard (Gamboa 2002) stated "Gradually it is recognized that the old
cities have" something" that new neighborhoods and new parts of
cities lack of (...), which makes them more livable, pleasant, recognizable=
and
understandable"(p. 17). Based on the ideas previously exposed, it can =
be
recognized the change of a system where the collective prevails over an
individualistic system; a system where its main function is movement, becau=
se
it is not exploring, but it is crossing.
A transcendental factor within the public space is=
the
social dimension. In fact, in the definition of urban space made by Delgado
(Delgado 2004) sociability in buildings and plazas was valorized, and
heterogeneity of actions and actors were recognized: “The urban, like the=
city minus
its architecture, everything that does not stop or solidify in it. A melted
universe (p. 4-5). Also, Gehl (Gehl 2004) in his book "Humanization of
Urban Space" classified activities as necessary, optional, and social
ones, this allows to make a direct relationship between spatial quality of
external areas with the number of social activities that take place in publ=
ic
spaces. In this sense, it can be observed that, in recent decades, there has
been a decline in social relationships due to the emergence at a great scal=
e of
architectural typologies that generate social segregation and, therefore, t=
he
re-placement of certain social encounters.
Additionally, it is important to point out that
today's cities have other requirements than cities in the past (Panagopoulo=
s et
al. 2018), the challenge is to conceive urban spaces that prioritize social
relations in public space and that contribute to the generation of sustaina=
ble
cities with less vehicular traffic (Soni and Soni 2016). Loss of quality of
public space affects cities in different contexts, this has caused a
reformulation of public spaces based on the logic of prioritizing pedestria=
ns,
and has forced to seek comprehensive planning, especially in highly
consolidated areas. Then, a review of previous studies that include diagnos=
es
in intervention areas is very important for its possible application in pla=
ces
that need to improve their public space.
For instance, there is research that allows us to
understand the behavior of pedestrians in study areas. One of these is carr=
ied
out in Kalamaria, Greece, where it was identified that the use of its public
space provides security and comfort to its residents. It was also identified
that these results are used by the authorities for their management (Panago=
poulos
et al. 2018). In Ecuador, a reference study is the one carried out (Hermida=
et
al. 2019) where a toolbox was built to evaluate the connectivity and comfor=
t of
urban banks that allows a comparative visual and numerical analysis in
different areas of the same river. In this line, on the research about
Indicators of Spatial Chaos in the Context of the Need for Retrofitting Sub=
urbs
the authors claim that the retrofitting of suburbs can be accomplished by
impacting two dimensions of spatial chaos: limited pedestrian mobility arou=
nd
the place of residence (walkability) and low access to basic services (Mant=
ey
and Pokojski 2020). Previous studies on users of public spaces allow us to
understand their needs and diagnose urban spaces before the intervention.
Cuenca is a city in the Andean region of Ecuador a=
nd
since 1999 it was declared a Cultural Heritage of Humanity by the United
Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). "El
Barranco" is the edge of the historic center of Cuenca, it is located =
on
the banks of the Tomebamba River and is a space with unprecedented
characteristics due to its landscape, its use, and its meaning for the memo=
ry
of the people of Cuenca. Also, "El Barranco" acts as a connector
between the historic center and the area of new urban planning that has a
significant topographic gap.
Under the above, the present investigation aims to
determine the influence of the quality of public space in the patterns of
behavior of pedestrians through the study of five strategic points of
pedestrian connection between the edge of the historic center and the area =
of
replanning urban Cuenca. Therefore, the questions to be answered are: how d=
oes
the quality of public space influence the behavior of pedestrians on the ed=
ge
of the historic center of Cuenca? Is the spatial quality of the historic ce=
nter
of Cuenca low? Is there a motivat=
ion for
pedestrians to carry out social activities on the stairways of “El
Barranco� Do the age group,
nationality, and ethnicity influence the use of public space? Is the kind of activity related to the=
use of
the public space of “El Barranco�
=
=
Metodologia.
Since this research is descriptive in nature, a
three-stage methodology is proposed to determine the influence of the quali=
ty
of public space on the behavior patterns of the inhabitants of the historic
center of Cuenca. The stages are as follows:
1.&n=
bsp; =
;
Study area;
2.&n=
bsp; =
;
Data collection to determine the
social behavior of the inhabitants of the Historic Center of Cuenca and the=
ir
perception of the public space;
3.&n=
bsp; =
;
Analysis and results.
=
=
Study
area
As mentioned above, “El
Barranco†is located in Cuenca, Ecuador. Cuenca is located in the souther=
n part
of the Andean mountain range and sits in a valley. Its climate is spring-li=
ke
all year round and it has a landscape that blends with the built-up scale of
the city. According to the Population and Housing Census carried out by the
National Institute of Statistics and Censuses (INEC), in 2010 the population
density of Cuenca was 4,701.63 inhabitants / km2. In 1999, its historic cen=
ter
was declared a World Heritage Site by UNESCO, and most of the institutional
buildings, hotels, restaurants, commercial premises, squares, and churches =
are
located there. Also, it groups a large part of the work, cultural, commerci=
al,
and service activities. Its urban morphology presents narrow colonial stree=
ts,
and its topography is rugged, especially towards the southern end where the
Tomebamba river is located (Terraza, Beltrán, and Orbea 2014).
Figure 1. Study area of “El Barrancoâ€, Cuenca, Ecuador.
Source:
Authors
elaboration
The edge of the historic
center of Cuenca is known as “El Barranco†which is perceived as a natu=
ral
boundary between the historic center (Spanish foundation) and the new plann=
ing
area of “El Ejidoâ€. It is bui=
lt near the
Tomebamba river to a height of 20 meters below the upper deck. Its buildings
have two facades of the same hierarchy; On one side, the buildings start in=
the
central street, and on the opposite side, they hang down towards the river =
and
are balconied towards the edges of the historic center, which makes them en=
joy
privileged landscapes. From the “El Vado†bridge to the “Puente Rotoâ=
€ sector
there are exterior connectors (connecting stairway) to the two terraces. The
study area figure 1. Therefore, the edge of the historic center called “El
Barranco†was defined as the study area. Five strategic points were selec=
ted
because they constitute a space with unique characteristics for the city and
its inhabitants. Its location is relevant since it is the transition from t=
he
terrace of the historic center, which descends towards the shore of the
Tomebamba River, to the area of new urban planning. Furthermore, the
archi-tectural complex that makes it up, thanks to its topography, allows p=
edestrians
to have a privileged view. Most of the surrounding streets and places of
citizen connections are almost mandatory for transit. Finally in general te=
rms,
"El Barranco" is a potential setting for social relations. The five strategic points selected (fi=
gure
2):
1. SP 1 - Stairway "El Vado"
2. SP 2 - Stairway "El Centenario"
3. SP 3 - Stairway "Juana de Oro"
4. SP 4 - Stairway “Francisco Sojo Jaramilloâ€
5. SP 5 - Stairway “Puente Rotoâ€
Figure 2. Strategic=
study
points in "El Barranco".=
Source:
Authors
elaboration
The characteristics that
describe the peripheral area of the historic center are quite forceful thus
some activities in the outer space, in each strategic point of the sector, =
can
be developed actively. The stairs allow the connection of necessary activit=
ies
between the heritage terrace and the contemporary one. It is important to
determine which strategic points selected favor social encounters. For this
reason, the diagnosis of the current situation of each connection point is
carried out through field observation and data collection using specialized
software. The selection of strategic points for behavior analyzes patterns =
is
shown below.
SP 1 - Stairway "El
Vado
This stairway was built
approximately 35 years ago and allows Tarqui Condamine Street to connect wi=
th
Paseo Tres de Noviembre (pedestrian path). There are 93 steps; and at the e=
nd,
there is a pedestrian bridge that allows communication with the main entran=
ce
of the University of Cuenca. Its area of influence is in the "El
Vado" neighborhood, which is one of the most emblematic and traditional
ones in the city. In the area of =
the
market 10 de Agosto, there are several buildings of heritage value such as =
the
Arcos house. There are also traditional businesses such as barbershops, toq=
uilla
straw hats shops, bronze and tin handcrafted products. Also, the “El Vado=
â€
bridge was the entrance to the city in colonial times and connects the upper
area of the city with Loja Avenue, where the emblematic San Roque neighborh=
ood
is located. In Figure 3, the area of influence, a photograph, and the setti=
ng
of this strategic point.
Figure 3. Area of
influence, photography, and surroundings of the stairway ``El Vadoâ€
Source:
Authors
elaboration
SP 2 - Stairway "El
Centenario"
It has been named after =
the
celebration of the 100 years of the independence of Cuenca since its
construction just finished during those days. This stairway consists of 47
steps and allows the connection of the two terraces of the city. This strat=
egic
point, which is located at Benigno Malo street, is particular because it
reaches Central Park that is just 300 meters away. By crossing its bridge, =
the
Solano Avenue is found where important commercial, banking, student
institutions are located as well as multi-family homes in height; and the
stadium. Finally, this strategic point has an impressive view of the southe=
rn
part of the city. In figure