Throughout the urban development process over the last seven decades in Tehran, the capital city of Iran, many self-generated neighbourhoods have developed in which the majority of the residents are low-income families. On one hand, the main spatial attribute of these deprived neighbourhoods is spatial isolation from the surrounding, more affluent areas, which is accompanied by inadequate urban infrastructure and a lack of accessibility and permeability. On the other hand, the Tehran City Revitalisation Organisation - the governmental sector which is in charge of the deprived areas - is incapable of conducting urban regenerations without investment from the private sector, and is seeking methods to create ‘socio-economic stimulant zones’ to attract private sector participation in regeneration programmes. In this regard, this research investigates the notion of ‘spatial isolation’ which in return causes socio-economic isolation as highlighted in the literature. The research suggests that in order to develop feasible regeneration programmes, which can meet the interest of both people and government, and release the deprived area from isolation both spatially and socio-economically, the regeneration plans should focus on public open space developments as ‘socio-economic stimulant zones’. With regard to this idea, the research highlights the street as a ‘social arena’ – not arteries or thoroughfares – as the type of public open space in which its development could not only release the deprived areas from spatial isolation, but could also direct more pedestrian movement to and through the deprived neighbourhoods, making more opportunities for the creation of socio-economic interactions. In this respect, the theory of ‘natural movement’ and theories and literature of ‘integrated public open spaces’ form the theoretical framework of the research to support this idea. For further investigation, two case studies, one as the deprived area and one as the control area, have been chosen, and the spatial pattern of the city and the two cases have been analysed in regard to the notion of ‘spatial isolation’ through Space Syntax using Depthmap software and GIS. Also, the correlation between the distribution pattern of commercial land uses and syntactic measures across the city of Tehran is investigated to identify the potential streets in which to create commercial opportunities. Afterwards, in order to study the street life and the variety of activities the streets can afford, a few locally integrated streets in the deprived case have been chosen. At this stage, nineteen behaviours have been observed and classified in five major classes including the necessary, social, optional, hazardous, and occasional activities, and the correlation with syntactic measures are studied. Moreover, the methods of developing a route filtering system and a transformability index for identifying the most suitable streets for the creation of a pedestrian friendly network are discussed, using an example of a deprived area, integrating it with the surrounding urban fabric to create the ‘socio-economic stimulant zones’. The results show that by identifying the underlying spatial pattern of the urban fabric, it is possible to release the deprived areas from its spatial isolation through developing a street network without causing urban fragmentation. This approach could also form a cost-effective basis for developing a pedestrian friendly street network as one of the ‘socio-economic stimulant zones’, which the Tehran City Revitalisation Organisation is looking for; the type of streets that not only support the necessary activities and transportation, but could also facilitate socio-economic interaction.

I många svenska städer så finns det spår av fragmentering, segregation och uppdelning av boendemiljöer. Uppdelningen av den fysiska miljön bidrar då också till en uppdelning av människor. Detta påverkar det sociala samspelet och individens förutsättningar i vardagen då de olika boendemiljöerna har olika placering i staden som helhet och på så sätt existerar de på olika premisser. Fragmentering och uppdelning av boendemiljöer behöver inte alltid vara något negativt då detta också medför vissa positiva sociala aspekter såsom en känsla av samhörighet och gemenskap. Problematiken ligger i individens begränsningar som en rumslig fragmentering kan medföra. Denna studie undersöker hur den fysiska miljön påverkar möjligheterna till integrering i samhällen med utgångspunkt i två fallstudier av två miljonprogramsområden i Sverige. Fallstudien tolkas utifrån urbanmorfologi och space syntax för att förstå hur stadens utformning och placering av olika samhällsfunktioner påverkar de sociala förutsättningarna. Undersökningen görs också utifrån perspektivet fysisk planering. Undersökningens mål är inte att påverka segregationen utan endast undersöka möjligheterna för individen att ta del av helheten och få större möjligheter till att styra över sitt eget liv. Undersökningen avser alltså att försöka förstå fragmenteringen i stadens uppbyggnad i relation till det sociala samspelet. Undersökningen påbörjades genom en stor kvalitativ innehållsanalys av flertalet källor som hanterar frågor såsom urbanmorfologi och stadens förutsättningar för socialt samspel. Detta skapar en grund för hur fallstudiens material sedan ska studeras. Båda områdena i fallstudien visar tydliga tecken på att vara utformade efter sin tids planeringsideal. Detta i kombination med flera andra faktorer ger indikationer på varför områdena upplevs som fragmenterade och ej som en del av övriga samhället. Kombinationen med analysen av kartmaterialet och axialkartan visar på barriärer mot övriga delar av städerna samt hur platsen upplevs av individen. Det blir också tydligt att områdena genom sin placering och de funktioner som finns på platsen lätt blir isolerade och att detta då leder till en ökad uppdelning i samhället där olika befolkningsgrupper inte kan mötas. Axialkartan visar också på stora svårigheter att lämna områdena och hur avståndet kan uppfattas som långt trots att det faktiska avståenden inte är speciellt långa. Undersökningen och rapporten visar slutligen på vikten av att studera detta fenomen om fragmentering kopplat till urbanmorfologi. Detta då vidare forskning inom fältet skulle kunna bidra till att riktlinjer för den fysiska planeringen tas fram som på sikt skulle kunna minska fragmenteringen och skapa möjligheter för individen att färdas fritt i staden. Hela undersökningen visade tydligt vilken effekt den fysiska planeringen kan få för det sociala samspelet i en stad och hur uppdelad den då kan bli.

Este estudo trata da relação entre a comunicação visual urbana e sua percepção e uso pelos indivíduos em deslocamento pela cidade. A investigação concentrou-se na avaliação dos desempenhos estético e funcional da comunicação visual urbana em relação à influência que cada desempenho tem na apreensão do espaço construído segundo duas condições de mobilidade do transeunte ― a pé e de ônibus, e foi realizada através de um estudo de caso. Para tal, foram propostas três categorias de comunicação visual urbana: Comunicação de Ponto de Venda, Sinalização Urbana Pública e Mídia Exterior, elaborada uma metodologia a partir da Sintaxe Espacial e da Percepção Ambiental e selecionadas duas vias de Porto Alegre. A metodologia propõe o estudo do transeunte em dois aspectos: a identificação espacial do transeunte, utilizando a análise sintática do espaço urbano, e a percepção diferencial do transeunte, através da avaliação da percepção da qualidade visual do ambiente construído. Foram exploradas as hipóteses de que (1) de modo geral, as pessoas não prestam atenção à comunicação visual urbana, (2) existe uma percepção diferencial entre o transeunte em deslocamento a pé e o transeunte em deslocamento em ônibus, e (3) esta diferenciação incide sobre as categorias e os desempenhos da comunicação visual urbana. Os resultados mostram que desempenho estético influencia a percepção dos dois tipos de transeuntes, entretanto o desempenho funcional é especialmente relevante para os transeuntes de ônibus. / The present study deals with the relationship between urban visual communication and its perception and use by individuals in displacement across the city. The research focused on the evaluation of both aesthetic and functional performances of urban visual communication regarding the influence that each performance has in the apprehension of built space in two conditions of mobility of passers-by: on foot and by bus, and was carried out through a study case. For this purpose, three categories of urban visual communication were proposed: Point of Purchase Communication, Urban and Public Signaling and Outdoors Media; a methodology based on Space Syntax and Environmental Perception was developed and two itineraries in Porto Alegre were selected. The methodology proposes the study of the passer-by under two aspects: space identification of the passer-by, using syntactic analysis of urban space; and differential perception of the passer-by, assessing the perception of the visual quality of built environment. Hypotheses have been explored that (1) in general, people do not pay attention to urban visual communication, (2) there is a differential perception between passers-by in displacement on foot and passers-by in displacement by bus, (3) this differentiation focuses on the categories and performances of urban visual communication. Results show that aesthetic performance influences the perception of the two types of passers-by. However, functional performance is especially relevant to the passer-by in displacement by bus.

A copresença corresponde ao conjunto de pessoas que compartilham um espaço comum - não necessariamente interagindo entre si - e o seu estudo procura entender como o espaço que as permeia interfere na maneira como elas se movem, param, encontram outras pessoas e tem seu comportamento regulado pela presença de outros. O objetivo geral desta pesquisa foi, portanto, explicar os padrões da copresença em ruas a partir de seus atributos espaciais, buscando, especificamente, identificá-los e hierarquizá-los. Para isso, o fenômeno foi abordado a partir da análise dos padrões espaciais estabelecidos em segmentos de rua de loteamentos residenciais dispersos de cidades médias brasileiras, fazendo uso da análise configuracional da forma urbana – especificamente sintaxe espacial – e das diferenciações espaciais promovidas pelas atividades urbanas e pela permeabilidade física e visual entre espaços públicos e privados. Tinha-se como questão de pesquisa: quais as características espaciais influentes para a copresença em espaços públicos de loteamentos residenciais dispersos? A hipótese era que a copresença, nesse contexto sócio-espacial, seria influenciada, sobretudo, pelos atributos morfológicos configuracionais, os quais informam os potenciais de encontro social no sistema espacial da cidade Foram analisados dois loteamentos residenciais dispersos na cidade de Santa Maria (RS), com características espaciais diferenciadas e padrões de copresença próprios. A metodologia utilizada teve enfoque quantitativo, sendo utilizados modelos de regressão linear generalizados (MLGs) para inferência das relações entre as variáveis independentes e cada variável dependente, no caso, a copresença categorizada em pedestres parados e em movimento, em dias típicos (terças, quartas e quintasfeiras) e atípicos (domingos). Os atributos morfológicos configuracionais tiveram significância estatística para quase todos os modelos de regressão, validando a hipótese para o loteamento 1. No loteamento 2, a copresença foi melhor explicada pelas atividades urbanas. Os resultados referentes à permeabilidade física e visual mostraram-se inconclusivos em ambas as áreas de estudo. / Co-presence corresponds to the group of people who share a common space - not necessarily interacting with each other - and its study aims to understand how the space that permeates them interferes in the way they move, stop, find other people and have their behavior regulated by the presence of others. The main objective of this research was therefore to explain the patterns of copresence in streets from their spatial attributes, specifically seeking to identify them and to hierarchize them. The approach of the phenomenon was quantitative and based on the analysis of spatial patterns established in street segments of dispersed residential neighborhoods of Brazilian medium-sized cities, making use of configurational analysis of urban form - specifically space syntax - and spatial differentiation generated by urban activities and by physical and visual permeability between public and private spaces. The research question was: which spatial characteristics influence co-presence in public spaces of dispersed residential neighborhoods? The hypothesis was that co-presence would be influenced mainly by the configurational morphological attributes, which inform the potential of social encounter in the city's spatial system Two dispersed residential neighborhoods with different spatial characteristics and unique co-presence patterns were analyzed in Santa Maria city (RS). The methodology used generalized linear models (GLMs) to infer relations between the independent variables and each dependent variable: in this case, the co-presence categories of stationary and moving pedestrians on typical days (Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays) and atypical days (Sundays). The configurational morphological attributes had statistical significance for almost all regression models, validating the hypothesis for neighborhood 1. In neighborhood 2, co-presence was mainly explained by urban activities. The results regarding physical and visual permeability were inconclusive for both study areas.

This study focused on using a mapping tool, Space Syntax, to analyze the connectivity of the Cache County road network and its use to plan for bicycles. Space Syntax is being compared to another method that is already used by city planners called Bicycle Level of Service, or BLOS. The two analyses used data from Cache County and, after they were modeled and evaluated, a statistical analysis was done to see how similar one is to the other. The analyses were done at both a regional and a local scale. At both scales the analyses were not similar. Data was added to the Space Syntax analysis at both scales to see if it would influence making it more similar to BLOS. Adding the data had no effect in making them similar. It was determined that Space Syntax and BLOS are not similar and more research would need to be done to attempt to make them similar. They both have advantages and disadvantages to them when being used for planning for bicycles. One is not necessarily better than the other, as they are two different methods that could be used.

In this paper, the Swedish cities Gävle and Göteborg are compared regarding how well activity-based hotspots can capture pedestrian movement. The aim with this paper is to produce a further understanding about how the built environment affects human activities, as well as applying new methods for analyzing big geospatial data. The project is carried out with user generated travel data that comes from the company Trivector and their app TravelVu. Space syntax theory and methods are applied to the street networks to investigate if there are any correlations between the connectivity and the number of travels per street, which in turn is based on natural streets. The results indicate that there is a correlation between connectivity and number of travels per street. But with the use of naturally generated hotspots that are based on human activity, the correlation increases greatly, which imply that in areas with high human activity the connectivity of streets better captures the human movement than in areas with low activity.

Background: Urban form is a contributor to physical inactivity, which is a problem around the world. The association between urban form and physical activity is not fully understood, in part because improved methodologies of assessing urban form are necessary. This thesis consists of four studies that examined the association between urban form and physical activity in Edmonton, Alberta, using Geographic Information Systems. The research goals of this thesis were: (1) to compare two objective methods of assessing urban form walkability; (2) to examine the association between objective and subjective urban form measures and physical activity; and (3) to compare self-reported physical activity of individuals living in high and low walkability neighborhoods. Methods: Study 1 addressed Goal 1 and focused on objectively measuring urban form walkability based on public health and architectural (space syntax) measures. Study 2 addressed Goal 2 and focused on urban form association with self-reported physical activity. Study 3 addressed Goals 2 and 3 and focused on urban form association with self-reported walking. Study 4 addressed Goal 3 and involved an observational study of the pedestrian, cyclist, and vehicular movement in four neighbourhoods stratified by walkability and socio-economic status (SES). Results: Study 1 revealed agreement between public health and space syntax measures of assessing urban form. Study 2 revealed that only the objective environment was associated with physical activity. Study 3 revealed that only the perceived environment was associated with walking. Study 3 also revealed that walking as recommended was not different for individuals living in environments objectively assessed as higher versus lower in walkability. Study 4 revealed that observed pedestrian movement was higher in volume in neighbourhoods objectively assessed as higher in walkability. Cyclist movement was lower in volume in the neighbourhood classified as lower in walkability and in SES than in the other three neighbourhoods. Vehicular movement was no different in volume in the four neighbourhoods. Conclusion: Both objective and subjective urban form influence physical activity. A common Social Ecological Models - Space Syntax framework would enable a better understanding of urban form influences on physical activity.

The first two papers in this dissertation discuss a fairly recently developed research field, Space Syntax, and how the findings in this field may be used to understand spatial economic patterns such as geographic distribution of market rents. Both papers use standard econometric methods to investigate the relationship between rents and the so called integration value developed within Space Syntax. The integration value may be understood as a measure of the accessibility of a certain location in a street network. The measure is constructed using tools from graph theory and uses the shape of the street network as its only input. The papers estimate hedonic models of office and retail leases from central Stockholm to test whether the integration value can help explain rents. A statistically significant effect of integration value on both office and retail rent is found. It appears as if Space Syntax adds important information to the understanding of intraurban rent patterns. Illiquidity is a main feature of most property markets and market participants are therefore directed to property appraisals to obtain information about market values. The reliability of property appraisals is therefore an important research topic. The third paper studies the “rationality” of valuations by testing if capitalisation (cap) rates from individual discounted cash-flow (DCF) valuations are consistent with economic theory. Standard econometrics is used to study the variation in cap rates. For the most part the results support the hypothesis that appraisers are “rational” in the above mentioned sense. Illiquidity of direct property also poses a problem when constructing property price indices.  Lack of price observations and heterogeneity among the few observations available is likely to introduce noise in price indices based on transactions. Valuations are therefore often used instead to construct indices. These indices however suffer from a bias due to so called “appraisal smoothing”. In the fourth paper it is shown that, given certain assumptions, one may filter out noise in a transaction-based price index by regressing it on a valuation-based index (contemporaneous and lagged one period). The procedure may in some circumstances improve pure valuation- or transaction-based indices. / QC 20101201

<p>In the first paper the effect of accessibility upon rent is investigated for office properties located in Downtown Stockholm. Starting from the firm’s cost minimization problem, a translog hedonic model is derived. The results suggest the model has good predictive power in explaining the variation in the log of the rent. A negative rent gradient is obtained with a base approximately 90 meters from the postulated focal point. It appears as if Space Syntax adds important information to the understanding of the intraurban office rent pattern.</p><p>The second paper investigates assumed capitalisation rates in 3026 discounted cash flow valuations of office properties in Stockholm, Gothenburg and Malmö during the time period 1998-2004. The study investigates determinants of property-level variation in cap rates and how going in and exit cap rates relate to each other.</p><p>Exit cap rates exhibit substantial variation across properties. Part of this cross-sectional variation can be attributed to the location of the property, part of it is due to other characteristics of the property. Exit cap rates are differentiated between properties of the same type on the same market segment, which shows that valuers apply property level fine-tuning when setting exit cap rates. Properties with low market rent and high long-run vacancy assumption typically have high exit cap rates. Properties in peripheral parts of a city typically have higher exit cap rates than properties in central parts.</p><p>The implicitly assumed going-in cap rate (defined as assumed net operating income year one divided by estimated market value) follows a similar pattern as the exit cap rate but exhibits more temporary, property-specific variation. Going-in cap rates are strongly influenced by temporary deviations of vacancy rates and rents from assumed “normal” levels of vacancy and rent. The difference between going-in and exit cap rates is influenced by assumed short-run growth in net operating income in the way stipulated by theory: high assumed short-run growth is associated with going-in cap rates being lower than exit cap rates.</p>

Branches of complexity theory have been widely employed in geographic information systems (GIS) to explore phenomena that appear in urban environments. Among these, space syntax, as an urban morphological application of complexity theory, has attracted increasing attention in recent years. Accordingly, many computer-based tools have been developed to realize related analysis spatially, especially those that can be integrated as functions with GIS. In this thesis, a space syntax tool – Axwoman – is redeveloped and tested as an extension of ESRI ArcGIS Desktop in order to fulfill certain specific needs in urban morphological analysis. It is primarily used to calculate all space syntax measures for several urban systems and to explore the relationships between these measures. To meet the needs for this new version of Axwoman, several functions have been updated and changed, for drawing, coloring, and classifying axial lines as maps for visual thinking; ticking overpasses and excluding them from computing space syntax parameters; and integrating AxialGen and Axwoman. In accordance with this, several case studies have been performed on the urban street networks in large cities. In this paper, Stockholm was chosen as the study object at both the urban level and the building level. After the scaling analysis and time efficiency analysis, the results are also interpreted from a structural point of view and in terms of how the function of space is subject to its morphological structure. Finally, the connectivity of axial lines (a spatial measurement in space syntax theory) was found to follow a power-law distribution. Through this work, the new edition of Axwoman generating satisfactory outputs, the research have proved that the connectivity of axial lines follows a lognormal distribution or a power-law-like distribution, which is one of the heavy-tailed distributions. In addition, it was have found that axial lines better for capture the underlying urban morphologies showed in their study on redefining the generated axial lines from street center lines. Moreover, fewer longest axial lines will show up on the maps, just as coincidental as the shape of mental maps, which proved that the axial line representations can be a powerful tool for urban studies.