Urban design is the collaborative and multi-disciplinary process of shaping the physical setting for life in

cities, towns and villages; the art of making places; design in an urban context. Urban design involves the
design of buildings, groups of buildings, spaces and landscapes, and the establishment of frameworks and
processes that facilitate successful development.
 Peter Webber defines urban design as 'the process of molding the form of the city through time'.
 Jerry Spencer has described it as 'creating the theatre of public life'.

In the words of the writer and critic Peter Buchanan: 'Urban design is about how to recapture certain of the
qualities (qualities which we experience as well as those we see) that we associate with the traditional city: a
sense of order, place, continuity, richness of experience, completeness and belonging.
Urban design is essentially about place making, where place is not just a specific space, but all the activities
and events that it makes possible. As a consequence the whole city is enriched.
“Urban Design is generally accepted name for the process of giving physical design direction to urban
growth, conservation and change. It is understood to include landscape as well as buildings, both
preservation and new construction and rural areas as well as cities.” Modern Cities – Chandigarh,
Bhuvneshwar, Gandhinagar Medieval Cities – Shahjahanabad, Madrai, Jaipur Baroque Cities – Delhi
Urban Design forms the intersection of urban planning, landscape architecture and architecture and it
requires a good understanding of a range of others as well such as urban economics, political economy and
social theory.
“Urban Design” is the composition of architectural form and open space in a community context. The
elements of a city’s architecture are its buildings, urban landscape and service infrastructure just as form,
structure and internal space are elements of a building. Whether public or private in actual ownership, urban
design comprises the architecture of an entire community that all citizens can enjoy and identify their own.
Like architecture, urban design reflects considerations of function, economics and efficiency as well as
aesthetics and cultural qualities.

COMPONENTS OF URBAN SPACE

BUILDINGS
Buildings are the most pronounced elements of urban design - they shape and articulate space by forming the
streetwalls of the city. Well designed buildings and groups of buildings work together to create a sense of
place.

PUBLIC SPACES
Great public spaces are the living room of the city - the place where people come together to enjoy the city
and each other. Public spaces make high quality life in the city possible - they form the stage and backdrop to
the drama of life. Public spaces range from grand central plazas and squares, to small, local neighborhood
parks.

STREETS
Streets are the connections between spaces and places, as well as being spaces themselves. They are defined
by their physical dimension and character as well as the size, scale, and character of the buildings that line
them. Streets range from grand avenues such as the Champs-Elysees in Paris to small, intimate pedestrian
streets. The pattern of the street network is part of what defines a city and what makes each city unique.

TRANSPORT
Transport systems connect the parts of cities and help shape them, and enable movement throughout the city.
They include road, rail, bicycle, and pedestrian networks, and together form the total movement system of a
city. The balance of these various transport systems is what helps define the quality and character of cities,
and makes them either friendly or hostile to pedestrians. The best cities are the ones that elevate the
experience of the pedestrian while minimizing the dominance of the private automobile.

LANDSCAPE
The landscape is the green part of the city that weaves throughout - in the form of urban parks, street trees,
plants, flowers, and water in many forms. The landscape helps define the character and beauty of a city and
creates soft, contrasting spaces and elements. Green spaces in cities range from grand parks such as Central
Park in New York City and the Washington DC Mall, to small intimate pocket parks.
Need for Urban Design
Design can help to enhance a city’s assets:
• physical needs of citizens;
• safety, security and protection;
• an environment free of pollution, noise, accidents, and crime;
• a conducive social environment ..a sense of community;
• an appropriate image and prestige;
• creativity and self-expression in neighbourhoods;
• aesthetically pleasantness as a place of culture and a work of art.

URBAN ISSUES
Some of the major problems of urbanisation in India are 1. Urban Sprawl 2. Overcrowding 3. Housing 4.
Unemployment 5. Slums and Squatter Settlements 6. Transport 7. Water 8. Sewerage Problems 9. Trash
Disposal 10. Urban Crimes 11. Problem of Urban Pollution
1. Urban Sprawl: Urban sprawl or real expansion of the cities, both in population and geographical area, of
rapidly growing cities is the root cause of urban problems. In most cities the economic base is incapable of
dealing with the problems created by their excessive size. Massive immigration from rural areas as well as
from small towns into big cities has taken place almost consistently; thereby adding to the size of cities. The
greatest pressure of the immigrating population has been felt in the central districts of the city (the old city)
where the immigrants flock to their relatives and friends before they search for housing. Population densities
beyond the “old city” decline sharply.This is due to the fact that such large cities act as magnets and attract
large number of immigrants by dint of their employment opportunities and modern way of life. Such
hyperurbanisation leads to projected cities sizes of which defy imagination. Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata,
Chennai, Bangalore, etc. are examples of urban sprawl due to large scale migration of people from the
surrounding areas.

2. Overcrowding: Overcrowding is a situation in which too many people live in too little space.
Overcrowding is a logical consequence of over-population in urban areas. It is naturally expected that cities
having a large size of population squeezed in a small space must suffer from overcrowding. This is well
exhibited by almost all the big cities of India. For example, Mumbai has one-sixth of an acre open space per
thousand populations though four acre is suggested standard by the Master Plan of Greater Mumbai.
Metropolitan cities of India are overcrowded both in ‘absolute’ and ‘relative’ terms. Absolute in the sense
that these cities have a real high density of population; relative in the sense that even if the densities are not
very high the problem of providing services and other facilities to the city dwellers makes it so. Delhi has a
population density of 9,340 persons per sq km (Census 2001) which is the highest in India. This is the overall
population density for the Union territory of Delhi. Population density in central part of Delhi could be much
higher. This leads to tremendous pressure on infrastructural facilities like housing, electricity, water,
transport, employment, etc. Efforts to decongest Delhi by developing ring towns have not met with the
required success.
3. Housing: Overcrowding leads to a chronic problem of shortage of houses in urban areas. This problem is
specifically more acute in those urban areas where there is large influx of unemployed or underemployed
immigrants who have no place to live in when they enter cities/towns from the surrounding areas. The major
factors are shortage of building materials and financial resources, inadequate expansion of public utilities
into sub-urban areas, poverty and unemployment of urban immigrants, strong caste and family ties and lack
of adequate transportation to sub-urban areas where most of the vacant land for new construction is located.
4. Unemployment - One of the major causes of urban unemployment is the large scale migration of people
from rural to urban areas. Rural-urban migration has been continuing for a pretty long time but it has not
always been as great a problem as it is today. The general poverty among the rural people pushes them out to
urban areas to migrate in search of livelihood and in the hope of a better living. But the growth of economic
opportunities fails to keep pace with the quantum of immigration. The limited capacity of urban areas could
not create enough employment opportunities and absorb the rapid growth of the urban labour force.

5. Slums and Squatter Settlements: The natural sequel of unchecked, unplanned and haphazard growth of
urban areas is the growth and spread of slums and squatter settlements which present a striking feature in the
ecological structure of Indian cities, especially of metropolitan centres.
The following criteria characterises an area as Slum:
 • All areas notified “Slum” by state govt. under any Act.
• All areas recognised as slum by state govt. which have not been formally notified as slum under any
Act.
• A compact area of at least 300 populations or about 60-70 households of poorly built congested
tenements in unhygienic environment usually with inadequate infrastructure and lacking in proper
sanitary and drinking water facilities. Normally, squatter settlements contain makeshift dwellings
constructed without official permission (i.e., on unauthorised land). Such settlements are constructed
by using any available material such as cardboards, tin, straw mats or sacks. Squatter settlements are
constructed in an uncontrolled manner and badly lack essential public services such as water, light,
sewage.

6. Transport: With traffic bottleneck and traffic congestion, almost all cities and towns of India are suffering
from acute form of transport problem. Transport problems increase and become more complex as the town
grows in size. With its growth, the town performs varied and complex functions and more people travel to
work or shop. As the town becomes larger, even people living within the built-up area have to travel by car
or bus to cross the town and outsiders naturally bring their cars or travel by public transport. Wherever, trade
is important, commercial vehicles such as vans and trucks will make problem of traffic more complicated.
Since most of the commercial activities of the towns are concentrated in the Central Business District
(C.B.D.), the centres are areas of greatest congestion. However, other parts of the town are not free from
traffic congestion.
Such areas include the roads leading to factories, offices, schools, etc., which will be thronged with people in
morning and evening; minor shopping centres which grow up in the suburbs; sporting arenas, entertainment
districts which will be busy at night, roads leading to residential and dormitory towns which will be busy
when commuters flock to the cities in the morning to work and return home in the evenings.
Such congestion becomes greater when the centre is built up in tall skyscraper blocks whose offices
sometimes employ thousands of workers, because at the end of the office hours everyone leaves the building
within a short space of time to make their way home.This puts tremendous pressure on public transport and
causes journeys to take much longer period than they normally would.

7. Water: What is one of the most essential elements of nature to sustain life and right from the beginning of
urban civilisation, sites for settlements have always been chosen keeping in view the availability of water to
the inhabitants of the settlement. However, supply of water started falling short of demand as the cities grew
in size and number. The individual towns require water in larger quantities. Many small towns have no main
water supply at all and depend on such sources as individual tubewells, household open wells or even rivers.
Accelerated Urban Water Supply Programme (AUWSP) was launched to provide water to towns with
population of less than 20,000.
Mumbai draws water from neighbouring areas and from sources located as far as 125 km in the Western
Ghats. Chennai uses water express trains to meets its growing demand for water. Bangalore is located on the
plateau and draws water from Cauvery river at a distance of 100 km. Water for Bangalore has to be lifted
about 700 metres with help of lifting pumps.Hyderabad depends on Nagarjuna Sagar located 137 km away.
Delhi meets large part of its water requirements from Tajiwala in Haryana. Water is also drawn from
Ramganga as far as 180 km.

8. Sewerage Problems: Urban areas in India are almost invariably plagued with insufficient and inefficient
sewage facilities. Not a single city in India is fully sewered. According to latest estimates, only 35-40 per
cent of the urban population has the privilege of sewage system. Most of the cities have old sewerage lines
which are not looked after properly. Often sewerage lines break down or they are overflowing.Most cities do
not have proper arrangements for treating the sewerage waste and it is drained into a nearly river (as in
Delhi) or in sea (as in Mumbai, Kolkata and Chennai), thereby polluting the water bodies.In most Indian
cities, water pipes run in close proximity to sewer lines. Any leakage leads to contamination of water which
results in the spread of several water borne diseases.

9.Trash Disposal: As Indian cities grow in number and size the problem of trash disposal is assuming
alarming proportions. Huge quantities of garbage produced by our cities pose a serious health problem.Most
cites do not have proper arrangements for garbage disposal and the existing landfills are full to the brim.

10. Problem of Urban Pollution: With rapid pace of urbanisation, industries and transport systems grow
rather out of proportion. These developments are primarily responsible for pollution of environment,
particularly the urban environment. National Commission on Urbanization (NCU) has, in its policy proposal
of 1988, stressed the need for (a) the evolution of a spatial pattern of economic development and hierarchies
of human settlements, (b) an optimum distribution of population between rural and urban settlements, and
among towns and cities of various sizes, (c) distribution of economic activities in small and medium-sized
growth centres, (d) dispersal of economic activities through the establishment of counter-magnets in the
region, and (e) provision of minimum levels of services in urban and rural areas.

OBJECTIVES OF URBAN DESIGN

• Aesthetics: Strong Visual Impact
• Development: New Investment. Employment opportunities
• Functional Efficiency
• Improved Environmental conditions
• Safety (ref. Safer Cities Program; CEPTED)
• Guardianship and Space standards
• Technical Solutions to unique problems
• Cultural Identity and symbolism
• Community Integration
• Character: A place with its own identity
• Continuity and Enclosure: A place where public and private spaces are clearly distinguished
• Quality of the Public Realm: A place with attractive and successful outdoor areas
• Ease of Movement: A place that is easy to get to and move through
• Adaptability: A place that can change easily
• Legibility: A place that has a clear image and is easy to understand
• Diversity: A place with variety and choice

There are four Objectives:

• To minimise the opportunity for crime and help to reduce the fear of crime for residents in their
homes and public spaces.
• To consider the needs of the most vulnerable groups in society (the elderly, children, women,
disabled people and ethnic minority groups) above others. This is because fear of crime
disproportionately affects these groups and greatly hampers their chances of enjoying the
environment and taking a full part in community life.
• To achieve reductions in crime across the community, not simply the displacement of crime from one
area to others.
• To create a more sustainable environment by ensuring ease of maintenance, long life and
adaptability.

SCOPE OF UD
The need for UD as a discipline has arisen as a result of the fundamental cultural, political, social and
economic changes. Other issues include the impact of environmental issues and quality of life on the nature
of the city and how urban form can best be adapted to our current and future needs. It has proved difficult to
provide a simple, commonly accepted definition of the scope of UD.
• Ecological Significance: Urban Design involves modifying the natural environment. It largely deals
with the quality of built environment that are vital for preserving nature. It can be effected positively
or negatively; more emphasis on pedestrian circulation; relevance of site (like contour site).
Neighborhood concept – everything in 10 minutes reach by walking.
• Economic Significance: Due to competition, quality of built environment is the key factor that
significantly affects local, regional and international image of countries and sets the stage for all
economic activity. As Harvey points out that there is string relationship between technological
changes in the economic production and structural changes in the quality and production of urban
spaces. Here we can consider the concept of smart cities (fully hi-tech designs)
• Social and Cultural Significance: An important factor determining why people choose to visit, invest
 in or relocate to a particular place is the “atmosphere” or the “cultural” identity (eg- Chandigarh or
Goa)

1.GREEK AGORA
The Agora - An ancient marketplace. The agora in Athens had private housing, until it was reorganized by
Peisistratus in the 6th century BC.
It was originally an area inhabited by various families in small houses, will in the course of the 5th century,
be progressively built up, articulated with grand public buildings around its perimeter, in order to frame and
give a point of reference to the life of the democratic polis, or city-state.

 Agora, in ancient Greek cities, an open space that served as a meeting ground for various activities of the
citizens.
 The name, first found in the works of Homer, connotes both the assembly of the people as well as the
physical setting; it was applied by the classical Greeks of the 5th centuryBC to what they regarded as a
typical feature of their life: their daily religious, political, judicial, social, and commercial activity.
 The agora was located either in the middle of the city or near the harbour, which was surrounded by public
buildings and by temples.
 Colonnades, sometimes containing shops, or stoae, often enclosed the space, and statues, altars, trees, and
fountains adorned it.
 The general trend at this time was to isolate the agora from the rest of the town. Earlier stages in the
evolution of the agora have been sought in the East and, with better results, in MinoanCrete (for instance, at
Ayiá Triádha) and in Mycenaean Greece (for instance, at Tiryns).
 In the 5th and 4th centuries BC two kinds of agora existed.
 Pausanias, writing in the 2nd century AD, calls one type archaic and the other Ionic.
 He mentions the agora of Elis (built after 470 BC) as an example of the archaic type, in which colonnades
and other buildings were not coordinated; the general impression created was one of disorder.
 The agora of Athens was rebuilt to this type of design after the Persian Wars (490–449 BC). The Ionic type
was more symmetrical, often combining colonnades to form either three sides of a rectangle or a regular
square; Miletus, Priene, and Magnesia ad Maeandrum, cities in Asia Minor, provide early examples.
 This type prevailed and was further developed in Hellenistic and Roman times. In this later period the
agora influenced the development of the Romanforum and was, in turn, influenced by it.
 The forum, however, was conceived in a more rigid manner than the agora and became a specific, regular,
open area surrounded by planned architecture.
 The use of the agora varied at different periods. Even in classical times the space did not always remain
the place for popular assemblies.
 In Athens the ecclesia, or assembly, was moved to the Pnyx (a hill to the west of the Acropolis), though
the meetings devoted to ostracism were still held in the agora, where the main tribunal remained.
 A distinction was maintained between commercial and ceremonial agoras in Thessaly and elsewhere
(Aristotle, Politics, vii, II, 2). In the highly developed agora, like that of Athens, each trade or profession had
its own quarter. Many cities had officials called agoranomoi to control the area.
 The agora also served for theatrical and gymnastic performances until special buildings and spaces were
reserved for these purposes.
 In Athens respectable women were seldom seen in the agora. Men accused of murder and other crimes
were forbidden to enter it before their trials. Free men went there not only to transact business and to act as
jurors but also to talk and idle—a habit often mentioned by comic poets. In exceptional circumstances a
tomb in the agora was granted as the highest honour for a citizen.

2. ROMAN FORUM
 The Roman Forum is a rectangular forum (plaza) surrounded by the ruins of several important ancient
government buildings at the center of the city of Rome. Citizens of the ancient city referred to this space,
originally a marketplace, as the Forum Magnum, or simply the Forum.
 It was for centuries the center of Roman public life: the site of triumphal processions and elections; the
venue for public speeches, criminal trials, and gladiatorial matches; and the nucleus of commercial affairs.
 Here statues and monuments commemorated the city's great men.
 The teeming heart of ancient Rome, it has been called the most celebrated meeting place in the world, and
in all history.
 Located in the small valley between the Palatine and Capitoline Hills, the Forum today is a sprawling ruin
of architectural fragments and intermittent archaeological excavations attracting 4.5 million sightseers yearly.
 Many of the oldest and most important structures of the ancient city were located on or near the Forum.
 Eventually much economic and judicial business would transfer away from the Forum Romanum to the
larger and more extravagant structures (Trajan's Forum and the Basilica Ulpia) to the north.
 The reign of Constantine the Great, during which the Empire was divided into its Eastern and Western
halves, saw the construction of the last major expansion of the Forum complex—the Basilica of Maxentius
(312 AD). This returned the political center to the Forum until the fall of the Western Roman Empire almost
two centuries later.

STRUCTUES
Temple of Saturn,
Temple of Vespasian and Titus,
Arch of Septimius Severus,
Curia Julia,Rostra,
Basilica Aemilia,
Forum Main Square,
Basilica Iulia,
Temple of Caesar,
Regia,
Temple of Castor and Pollux,
Temple of Vesta
 An impressive – if rather confusing – sprawl of ruins, the Roman Forum was ancient Rome's showpiece
centre, a grandiose district of temples, basilicas and vibrant public spaces.
 The site, which was originally an Etruscan burial ground, was first developed in the 7th century BC,
growing over time to become the social, political and commercial hub of the Roman empire. Landmark
sights include the Arco di Settimio Severo , the Curia , and the Casa delle Vestali .
 Like many of Rome's great urban developments, the Forum fell into disrepair after the fall of the Roman
Empire until eventually it was used as pasture land. In the Middle Ages it was known as the Campo Vaccino
('Cow Field') and extensively plundered for its stone and marble.
 The area was systematically excavated in the 18th and 19th centuries, and excavations continue to this
day.
 Entering from Largo della Salara Vecchia – you can also enter directly from the Palatino or via an entrance
near the Arco di Tito – you'll see the Tempio di Antonino e Faustina ahead to your left. Erected in AD 141,
this was transformed into a church in the 8th century, the Chiesa di San Lorenzo in Miranda . To your right
the 179 BC Basilica Fulvia Aemilia was a 100m-long public hall with a two-storey porticoed facade.
 At the end of the path, you'll come to Via Sacra , the Forum’s main thoroughfare, and the Tempio di Giulio
Cesare (also known as the Tempio del Divo Giulio). Built by Augustus in 29 BC, this marks the spot where
Julius Caesar was cremated.
 Heading right up Via Sacra brings you to the Curia , the original seat of the Roman Senate. This barn-like
construction was rebuilt on various occasions before being converted into a church in the Middle Ages. What
you see today is a 1937 reconstruction of how it looked in the reign of Diocletian
 In front of the Curia, and hidden by scaffolding, is the Lapis Niger , a large piece of black marble that's
said to cover the tomb of Romulus.
 At the end of Via Sacra, the 23m-high Arco di Settimio Severo is dedicated to the eponymous emperor and
his two sons, Caracalla and Geta. It was built in AD 203 to commemorate the Roman victory over the
Parthians.
 In front of the arch are the remains of the Rostrum , an elaborate podium where Shakespeare had Mark
Antony make his famous 'Friends, Romans, countrymen…' speech. Facing this, the Colonna di Foca
(Column of Phocus) rises above what was once the Forum's main square,

 The eight granite columns that rise behind the Colonna are all that remain of the Tempio di Saturno , an
important temple that doubled as the state treasury. Behind it are (from north to south): the ruins of the
Tempio della Concordia , the Tempio di Vespasiano , and the Portico degli Dei Consenti .
 From the path that runs parallel to Via Sacra, you'll pass the stubby ruins of the Basilica Giulia , which
was begun by Julius Caesar and finished by Augustus. At the end of the basilica, three columns remain from
the 5th-century BC Tempio di Castore e Polluce . Nearby, the 6th-century Chiesa di Santa Maria Antiqua , is
the oldest Christian church in the Forum.
 Back towards Via Sacra is the Casa delle Vestali (currently off-limits), home of the virgins who tended the
sacred flame in the adjoining Tempio di Vesta . The six virgin priestesses were selected from patrician
families when aged between six and 10 to serve in the temple for 30 years. If the flame in the temple went
out the priestess responsible would be flogged, and if she lost her virginity she would be buried alive. The
offending man would be flogged to death.