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1 – 10 of 100Linda Hijriyah, Anuar Alias and Mohd Firrdhaus Mohd Sahabuddin
This study intends to analyze the trend of walkability research over two years (2021–2022) in several aspects, including the research problem, gap and aim underlying walkability…
Abstract
Purpose
This study intends to analyze the trend of walkability research over two years (2021–2022) in several aspects, including the research problem, gap and aim underlying walkability issues, research setting, the scale of analysis, the type of data, the data collection tool, the analysis method and contribution.
Design/methodology/approach
Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) is employed to conduct a systematic literature review from three leading databases including Web of Science (WoS), Scopus and Sage.
Findings
From the review, it can be concluded that the research focuses on two aspects, namely, the built environment and people. The studies in this field are conducted at different scales of the built environment, from macroscale to microscale, including region, city, neighborhood and street-level studies that are conducted around the world including Asia, Europe and America which receive high attention from researchers. Meanwhile, the study of walkability in Australia and Africa gains less attention. It is revealed that there are four factors of walkability including land use and accessibility for macroscale which cover region, city and neighborhood, while street network and pedestrian infrastructure and facility are mainly analyzed for street-level. Most of the studies widely utilize a quantitative approach for analyzing physical walkability factors in a measurement-based approach by using certain tools/software, and a perception-based approach by using questionnaires.
Research limitations/implications
The findings can assist to keep up with the rapid pace of scientific publications and help accelerate the understanding of particular ideas in the field of walkability for the planning and design practice and policy that can be used by researchers/academia, urban designers, urban planners, architects, engineers and policymakers. Also, this study hopefully could assist further research direction for the future and could add value to a more advanced way of understanding the research on walkability.
Originality/value
This research provides a robust framework for walkability trend analysis and a comprehensive understanding of the main ideas from the existing research on walkability worldwide.
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This paper aims to examine accessibility in the built environment and tries to determine the physical and attitudinal barriers affecting Persons with Visual Disabilities' (PWVDs…
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims to examine accessibility in the built environment and tries to determine the physical and attitudinal barriers affecting Persons with Visual Disabilities' (PWVDs) experience on the University of Jordan (UJ) campus.
Design/methodology/approach
This is a descriptive mixed-methods study, based on the following: data collection regarding PWVDs' services at UJ; semi-structured interviews with PWVDs and with some employees at UJ; observations, photographs and direct measurements during campus tours; accompanying one student with poor eyesight when navigating through UJ campus; then, analyzing data in light of the national code's accessibility checklist.
Findings
UJ campus suffers from many shortcomings regarding accessibility; these include an insufficient pedestrian environment, limited tactile paths, low illuminance levels in lecture halls and other inadequate services. Besides, there are many infringements on PWVDs' paths, due to either new expansions or unconscious behavior. Moreover, interpersonal barriers prevent PWVDs from using assistive equipment and accommodation. The study concludes that preserving pedestrians' rights, monitoring new expansions, renovating the UJ campus in accordance with national codes and international standards, improving PWVDs services and awareness-raising programs are needed to ensure accessibility for PWVDs.
Originality/value
New legislation has been recently passed regarding accessibility in Jordan, and – on the UJ campus – the first phase of tactile paving has been installed. This paper is believed to be the first of its kind to evaluate PWVDs' services following the new changes. The study's methodology might also be deemed useful to stakeholders when enabling the built environment.
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This paper aims to identify the different system approach using Building Information Modelling (BIM) technology that is equipped with decision making processes. Maintenance…
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims to identify the different system approach using Building Information Modelling (BIM) technology that is equipped with decision making processes. Maintenance planning and management are integral components of the construction sector, serving the broader purpose of post-construction activities and processes. However, as Precast Concrete (PC) construction projects increase in scale and complexity, the interconnections among these activities and processes become apparent, leading to planning and performance management challenges. These challenges specifically affect the monitoring of façade components for corrective and preventive maintenance actions.
Design/methodology/approach
The concept of maintenance planning for façades, along with the main features of information and communication technology tools and techniques using building information modeling technology, is grounded in the analysis of numerous literature reviews in PC building scenarios.
Findings
This research focuses on an integrated system designed to analyze information and support decision-making in maintenance planning for PC buildings. It is based on robust data collection regarding concrete façades' failures and causes. The system aims to provide appropriate planning decisions and minimize the risk of façade failures throughout the building's lifetime.
Originality/value
The study concludes that implementing a research framework to develop such a system can significantly enhance the effectiveness of maintenance planning for façade design, construction and maintenance operations.
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Xiaobo Shi, Yaning Qiao, Xinyu Zhao, Yan Liu, Chenchen Liu, Ruopeng Huang and Yuanlong Cui
Modern subway transportation systems need to satisfy increasing safety demands to rapidly evacuate passengers under hazardous emergency circumstances, such as fires, accidents or…
Abstract
Purpose
Modern subway transportation systems need to satisfy increasing safety demands to rapidly evacuate passengers under hazardous emergency circumstances, such as fires, accidents or terrorist attacks, to reduce passenger injuries or life losses. The emergency evacuation capacity (EEC) of a subway station needs to be revised timely, in case passenger demand increases or the evacuation route changes in the future. However, traditional ways of estimating EEC, e.g. fire drills are time- and resource-consuming and are difficult to revise from time to time. The purpose of this study is to establish an intuitive modelling approach to increase the EEC of subway stations in a stepwised manner.
Design/methodology/approach
This study develops an approach to combine agent-based evacuation modelling and building information modelling (BIM) technology to estimate the total evacuation time of a subway station.
Findings
Evacuation time can be saved (33% in the studied case) from iterative improvements including stopping escalators running against the evacuation flow and modifying the geometry around escalator exits. Such iterative improvements rely on integrating agent-based modelling and BIM.
Originality/value
The agent-based model can provide a more realistic simulation of intelligent individual movements under emergency circumstances and provides precise feedback on locations of evacuation bottlenecks. This study also examined the effectiveness of two rounds of stepwise improvements in terms of operation or design to increase the EEC of the station.
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Karin Farag and Can Baran Aktas
The purpose of this study is to identify the most prevalent initiatives undertaken by leading universities in sustainability and offer a roadmap for other institutions seeking to…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this study is to identify the most prevalent initiatives undertaken by leading universities in sustainability and offer a roadmap for other institutions seeking to undertake similar actions and contribute to more effective implementation of sustainability practices.
Design/methodology/approach
By using a quantitative assessment approach, the study sheds light on successful initiatives implemented by universities worldwide, spanning six categories: transportation, waste management, curriculum, food and dining, water and energy. Each category is clearly related to one or more of the 17 sustainable development goals. A cluster analysis was also applied to identify regional trends in preferred initiatives.
Findings
The study underlines the importance of integrating sustainability principles into the curricula of higher education institutions (HEIs) as well as educating staff members on energy and water management. The most common and impactful initiatives in the studied six categories have been identified. Many of the initiatives mentioned in the study do not just result in reducing ecological footprint but also provide economic savings as well. Differences among regions and countries were observed in the implementation of initiatives. Cultural and habitual factors should not be disregarded during the selection process of initiatives.
Originality/value
The findings of this study may help universities to take their first steps toward implementing initiatives that can effectively promote sustainable development. Results will aid other HEIs in planning for next steps while outlining the more common initiatives.
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Li He, Shuai Zhang, Heng Zhang and Liang Yuan
The purpose of this paper is to solve the problem that mobile robots are still based on reactive collision avoidance in unknown dynamic environments leading to a lack of…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to solve the problem that mobile robots are still based on reactive collision avoidance in unknown dynamic environments leading to a lack of interaction with obstacles and limiting the comprehensive performance of mobile robots. A dynamic window approach with multiple interaction strategies (DWA-MIS) is proposed to solve this problem.
Design/methodology/approach
The algorithm firstly classifies the moving obstacle movement intention, based on which a rule function is designed to incorporate positive incentives to motivate the robot to make correct avoidance actions. Then, the evaluation mechanism is improved by considering the time cost and future information of the environment to increase the motion states. Finally, the optimal objective function is designed based on genetic algorithm to adapt to different environments with time-varying multiparameter optimization.
Findings
Faced with obstacles in different states, the mobile robot can choose a suitable interaction strategy, which solves the limitations of the original DWA evaluation function and avoids the defects of reactive collision avoidance. Simulation results show that the algorithm can efficiently adapt to unknown dynamic environments, has less path length and iterations and has a high comprehensive performance.
Originality/value
A DWA-MIS is proposed, which increases the interaction capability between mobile robots and obstacles by improving the evaluation function mechanism and broadens the navigation strategy of DWA at a lower computational cost. After real machine verification, the algorithm has a high comprehensive performance based on real environment and provides a new idea for local path planning methods.
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The concept of green urban mobility has emerged as one of the best approaches for promoting environmental-friendly transportation in local communities. Green urban mobility aims…
Abstract
Purpose
The concept of green urban mobility has emerged as one of the best approaches for promoting environmental-friendly transportation in local communities. Green urban mobility aims to reshape public transportation system and enhance mobility, with emphasis on deploying digital technologies to promote sustainable public transportation. Therefore, this study aims to analyze existing public transportation policies by exploring how local communities can facilitate green urban mobility by developing a sociotechnical urban-based mobility model highlighting key factors that impact regions transitioning toward sustainable transportation.
Design/methodology/approach
This study investigates “the role of data for green urban mobility policies toward sustainable public transportation in local communities” in the form of a systematic literature review and insights from Norway. Secondary data from the literature and qualitative analysis of the national transport plan document was descriptively analyzed to provide inference.
Findings
Findings from this study provides specific measures and recommendations as actions for achieving a national green mobility practice. More important, findings from this study offers evidence from the Norwegian context to support decision-makers and stakeholders on how sustainable public transportation can be achieved in local communities. In addition, findings present data-driven initiatives being put in place to promote green urban mobility to decrease the footprint from public transportation in local municipalities.
Practical implications
This study provides green mobility policies as mechanisms to be used to achieve a sustainable public transportation in local communities. Practically, this study advocates for the use of data to support green urban mobility for transport providers, businesses and municipalities administration by analyzing and forecasting mobility demand and supply in terms of route, cost, time, network connection and mode choice.
Social implications
This study provides factors that would promote public and nonmotorized transportation and also aid toward achieving a national green urban mobility strategy. Socially, findings from this study provides evidence on specific green urban mobility measures to be adopted by stakeholders in local communities.
Originality/value
This study presents a sociotechnical urban-based mobility model that is positioned between the intersection of “human behavior” and “infrastructural design” grounded on the factors that influence green urban mobility policies for local communities transiting to a sustainable public transportation. Also, this study explores key factors that may influence green urban mobility policies for local communities toward achieving a more sustainable public transportation leading to a more inclusive, equitable and accessible urban environment.
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Yu Song, Bingrui Liu, Lejia Li and Jia Liu
In recent years, terrorist attacks have gradually become one of the important factors endangering social security. In this context, this research aims to propose methods and…
Abstract
Purpose
In recent years, terrorist attacks have gradually become one of the important factors endangering social security. In this context, this research aims to propose methods and principles which can be utilized to make effective evacuation plans to reduce casualties in terrorist attacks.
Design/methodology/approach
By analyzing the statistical data of terrorist attack videos, this paper proposes an extended cellular automaton (CA) model and simulates the panic evacuation of the pedestrians in the terrorist attack.
Findings
The main findings are as follows. (1) The panic movement of pedestrians leads to the dispersal of the crowd and the increase in evacuation time. (2) Most deaths occur in the early stage of crowd evacuation while pedestrians gather without perceiving the risk. (3) There is a trade-off between escaping from the room and avoidance of attackers for pedestrians. Appropriate panic contagion enables pedestrians to respond more quickly to risks. (4) Casualties are mainly concentrated in complex terrains, e.g. walls, corners, obstacles, exits, etc. (5) The initial position of the attackers has a significant effect on the crowd evacuation. The evacuation efficiency should be reduced if the attacker starts the attack from the exit or corners.
Originality/value
In this research, the concept of “focus region” is proposed to depict the different reactions of pedestrians to danger and the effects of the attacker’s motion (especially the attack strategies of attackers) are classified. Additionally, the influences on pedestrians by direct and indirect panic sources are studied.
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Long Zhao, Xiaoye Liu, Linxiang Li, Run Guo and Yang Chen
This study aims to realize efficient, fast and safe robot search task, the belief criteria decision-making approach is proposed to solve the object search task with an uncertain…
Abstract
Purpose
This study aims to realize efficient, fast and safe robot search task, the belief criteria decision-making approach is proposed to solve the object search task with an uncertain location.
Design/methodology/approach
The study formulates the robot search task as a partially observable Markov decision process, uses the semantic information to evaluate the belief state and designs the belief criteria decision-making approach. A cost function considering a trade-off among belief state, path length and movement effort is modelled to select the next best location in path planning.
Findings
The semantic information is successfully modelled and propagated, which can represent the belief of finding object. The belief criteria decision-making (BCDM) approach is evaluated in both Gazebo simulation platform and physical experiments. Compared to greedy, uniform and random methods, the performance index of path length and execution time is superior by BCDM approach.
Originality/value
The prior knowledge of robot working environment, especially semantic information, can be used for path planning to achieve efficient task execution in path length and execution time. The modelling and updating of environment information can lead a promising research topic to realize a more intelligent decision-making method for object search task.
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Madhavi Prashant Patil and Ombretta Romice
In urban studies, understanding how individuals perceive density is a complex challenge due to the subjective nature of this perception, which is influenced by sociocultural…
Abstract
Purpose
In urban studies, understanding how individuals perceive density is a complex challenge due to the subjective nature of this perception, which is influenced by sociocultural, personal and environmental factors. This study addresses these complexities by proposing a systematic framework for comprehending how people perceive density within urban contexts.
Design/methodology/approach
The methodology for developing the framework involved a systematic review of existing literature on the perception of density and related concepts, followed by integrating insights from empirical investigations. The framework designed through this process overcomes the limitations identified in previous research and provides a comprehensive guide for studying perceived density in urban environments.
Findings
The successful application of the framework on case studies in Glasgow and international settings enabled the identification of 20 critical spatial factors (buildings, public realm and urban massing) influencing density perception. The research provided insights into the subjective nature of density perception and the impact that spatial characters of urban form play, demonstrating the framework's effectiveness in understanding the impact of urban form, which is the realm of design and planning professions, on individual experiences.
Originality/value
The paper's originality lies in its comprehensive synthesis of the existing knowledge on the perception of density, the development of a user-responsive framework adaptable to future research and its application in case studies of different natures to identify recurrent links between urban form and user-specific constructs.
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