Investigating Pedestrian Based Informal Economy and Its Impact On Walkability In Dhaka City

With a specific focus on the developing context, this study explored relationships between pedestrian based informal economy and level of obstructions through a GIS based correlation analysis.

Globally the walkable environmental planning and design are receiving increasing attention for its numerous benefits. Therefore, it is necessary to have in-depth knowledge about pedestrian walkability particularly in cities of the developing world. Due to several socio-economic, physical and car-oriented development strategies, issues like walkability often gets overlooked in these contexts and Dhaka, the capital of Bangladesh, is no exception. The city of almost 20 millions has extreme inadequacy of pedestrian facilities. Moreover, massive pedestrian based informal economic activities gradually causing informalisation of pedestrian behaviours. Although, such activities add richness to an urban environment but here those practices ultimately hindering the fundamental purpose of having sidewalks. In this problem context, the study attempts to investigate the relationship between pedestrian based informal economy and level of obstructions through a correlation analysis using Geographic Information System. A geo-referenced survey was conducted to collect primary data on obstacle points, types, and scales in the central commercial district Motijheel and in a residential area Mirpur. The analysis revealed that mostly three features of the pedestrians play key role to attract informal economy to concentrate and grow which are – adjacent land-use pattern, amount of traveling population, and scope of alteration.