ISSUES RELATED TO PLANNING FOR PEDESTRIAN NEEDS IN CENTRAL BUSINESS DISTRICTS

The complexity of pedestrian travel patterns has resulted in the lack of in-depth research and standard procedures for planning and designing pedestrian facilities compared with those for other modes. A pedestrian circulation study was conducted in downtown Halifax, Nova Scotia, to analyze factors affecting the choice of routes. These factors were examined in relation to the physical characteristics of the location, personal characteristics of the trip makers, and the type of trip being made. The investigation of circulation patterns and needs suggests that the primary objective of central business district pedestrians is movement between points by the shortest path and that protection from weather, congestion-free sidewalks, and safety are only secondary concerns. Planning policies and guidelines are suggested that will enable user needs to be better incorporated into the planning process. An attempt is also made to compare these findings with those from other Canadian and European cities. These findings seem to suggest that pedestrians' needs and the difficulty of implementing new planning policies are similar in many ways.