|i onnectionCre- finding place in a Bulawayo train station |ii Revitalising a lifeless train station by re-linking it to the city through re-creating commuter rituals as a catalyst for stimulating human movement and urban development. |iii Th is document is submitted in partial fulfi lment for the degree: Master of Architecture [Professional] at the University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa, in the year 2011. |iv DESIGN SOLUTIONTHEORY ENQUIRY non place PLACE problems definition REVITALISATION OF PUBLIC TRANSPORT IN ZIMBABWE PUBLIC RAIL TRANSPORT IN BULAWAYO NEWTRANSPORT HUB - OLD BULAWAYOTRAIN STATION NEW URBANTRANSPORT FRAMEWORK FOR BULAWAYO design solution design concept NEWTRAIN STATION lost place thesis overview |v d e c l a r a t i o n I, Gillian Chikerema [471555A] am a student registered for the course, Master of Architecture [Professional] in the year 2011. I hereby declare the following: I am aware that plagiarism [the use of someone else’s work without permission and/or without acknowledging the original sources] is wrong. I confi rm that the work submitted for assessment for the above course is my own unaided work except where I have stated explicitly otherwise. I have followed the required conventions in referencing thoughts, ideas, and visual materials of others. For this purpose, I have referred to the Graduate School of Engineering and the Built Environment style guide. I understand that the University of the Witwatersrand may take disciplinary action against me if there is a belief that this is not my unaided work or that I have failed to acknowledge the source of ideas or words in my own work. All images are the authors own unless otherwise stated. …………………………………………………………………………… (Signature of Candidate) ……….. day of …………….., …………… |vi a c k n o w l e d g e m e n t s My deepest gratitude goes to the Department for their assistance in completing this thesis, my supervisor, Dr. Daniel Irurah, Prof. Jonathan Noble and Prof. Paul Kotze for their contribution throughout the year To my room-mates, friends and family for their unwavering support, and fi nally to the Almighty for giving me the design abilities needed to put together a building. |vii a b s t r a c t Every city experience is defi ned by the connective qualities of individual places within the city, however these human bodily experiences can potentially be disjointed if the individual places within the city are far from each other. Zimbabwe’s Bulawayo train station has become a lost place, a phrase associated with abandoned and under-used urban spaces, mainly because of their lack of connectivity to the city (Trancik (1986). As part of the government’s plan to improve Bulawayo’s public transport system, commuter rail transport is being introduced and expanded for public convenience. Creating a new transport hub at the train station is not enough to make sure that people will use rail transport as a form of public transport because the site’s location is outside the city. Th ough the place cannot be relocated nearer to the city, this thesis explores the ways in which this lost place can be reconnected to the city and transformed into a revitalised and vibrant transport hub for commuters from within and outside Bulawayo. One of the main aspects of ‘fi nding’ lost places involves using urban commuter rituals to rejuvenate the train station. Th ese rituals will be used to activate the internal and external spaces of the train station as a method of connecting the site to the city. Since movement is a vital entity of places of transit, restoring all commuter, private and public vehicular links from the city to the station will become another method of re-connection to be explored. Reconnecting existing comatose transit systems rejuvenates and improves the effi ciency of the urban life, however, more people in Zimbabwe are not using mass transport modes because of lack of security and their inaccessibility to the city centre. Public transport nodes are eroding fast and people are resorting to hitchhiking on a daily basis. Th is quality of life is taking over the city whilst abandoning other existing public transport systems. New routes of circulation are going to be established as a result of the new train station. Areas of commercial and social activity will occur bringing on the need for the area around the train station to be rezoned so as to accommodate the expected development. Th e station’s new programme will help realise the potential of places of transit as social centres that people can go to and not as temporal nodes of transit that people merely go through. Th e building’s new programme will allow spaces to create a new sense of place shaped by the users and their ritualistic activities. Whether they are formal or informal, these activities mark the new identity of the city’s commuter experience and at the same time act as a gateway to the many opportunities that lie in the city. |viii c o n t e n t s page |introduction objectives literature review |chapter one context introduction revitalisation of rail transport in Zimbabwe urbanisation and transportation in Zimbabwe public transport in Bulawayo, Zimbabwe new urban transport for Bulawayo urban framework conclusion |chapter two theory introduction lost place non place conclusion |chapter three fi nding place in a lost place introduction material culture material component social interactions 1 2 5 6 8 9 12 15 16 20 21 22 24 25 28 30 31 33 34 36 51 |ix c o n t e n t s page inscriptive component image component analysis of theory conclusion |chapter four atmosphere of a familiar place introduction design strategy design solution application of design principles urban design resolution conclusion |chapter fi ve programme development introduction programme analysis case studies commuter rituals Bulawayo commuter rituals Bulawayo train station Park Station, Johannesburg, South Africa Marabastaad taxi rank, Pretoria, South Africa Metro Mall taxi rank, Johannesburg, South Africa 60 61 62 66 67 69 70 72 79 80 90 91 93 94 96 97 99 100 101 104 105 |x page Cape town station, Cape Town, South Africa Italian Pavilion, Shanghai, China methods of conservation St Pancras international station, London. United Kingdom programme analysis conclusion |chapter six design development introduction concept formulation structural development sustainable strategies: water, energy and ventilation conclusion |chapter seven design urban framework layout ground fl oor plan fi rst fl oor plan sections elevations perspectives 108 109 110 111 113 114 115 117 118 136 140 144 145 146 150 152 154 157 159 c o n t e n t s |xi page |chapter eight technology development introduction structure and materiality movement and spatial infl uences where the old meets the new fi nal sketch details |conclusion |chapter nine references c o n t e n t s 168 169 170 172 175 177 178 179 |xii list of figures 1-0. rail network in Zimbabwe (after Surveyor General map 2011) 1-1. lorries are even being used to ferry people as a form of public transport (Mbara 2005:124) 1-2. passengers doing last minute shopping by a nearby supermarket in Harare (Mbara 2005:124) 1-4. public transport routes in Bulawayo (derived from Surveyor General Diagram 2011) 1.5. Renkini Long distance bus 1-6. City Hall Bus stop 1-7. a new rail transport framework for Bulawayo showing the diff erent phases of priority. the fi rst phase looks at servicing the city’s industrial sector, whilst the 2nd looks to service the high density residential area prior to the medium and low residential areas in phase 3 and 4 (derived from Local Government Plan No.4, 2011) 1-7. proposed new rail network for the city of Bulawayo (derived from Local Government Plan No. 5, 2011) 1-8. site map showing the location for the new train station and the area to be rezoned (derived from Local Government Plan No.4, 2011) 2-0. orlando commuter rail station bird’s eye view (Th rough their eyes, 2011) 2-1. the densifi cation of the business district overshadowing a low rise residential precinct (Th rough their eyes, 2011) 2-2. the diagram to the left shows the public rooms in the city, all at their diff erent scales generally found at water canals or pedestrian intersections. the spatial order of the city is shown in the fi gure ground on the right showing the ideal balance between built space to the open space (source: Dewar and Todeschini 1996:104) 2-3. aerial view of Massena District in Paris, France this industrial area had become obsolete next to active business and residential neighbourhoods (Our cities themselves 2010:36) 2-5. text in the form of signages in transport nodes have become prescriptive or informative navigators in space (sunita ram 2006) 2-4. the idea of a transit node with no anthropological reference 2-3. the plan of Venice, Italy (source: Dewar and Todeschini 1996:104) (All images are the authors own unless otherwise stated.) |xiii 2-4. aerial view of Massena District in Paris, France (Our cities themselves 2010:36) 2-5. the idea of a transit node with no anthropological reference 2-6. signages in transport nodes have become prescriptive or informative navigators in space (Sunita ram 2006) 3-0. modern architecture in Bulawayo 3-1. Bulawayo’s beautiful skyline 3-2. Bulawayo is characterised by the wide streets, wide enough for an ox cart to make a full turn 3-3. comparison of Bulawayo city planning to Bloemfontein, and New Delhi (after Local Government Plan No.4, 2011) 3-4. fi rst rail fi re engine 3-5. fi rst steam locomotive engines to be used in Bulawayo, Zimbabwe 3-6. Cecil Rhodes’ 1897 personal railway coach 3-7. zonal map of Bulawayo City centre and other Urban precincts (derived from Local Government Plan No.4, 2011) 3-8. images of some of the train services (:www.nrz.co.zw) 3-9. coal towers, a navigation point to the station 3-10. main entrance to train station Victorian architecture aged with time 3-11. one of the industrial sites around the train station 3-12. down town precinct leading to the train 3-13. fi rst steam locomotive to be used in Zimbabwe 3-14. railway museum 3-15. entrance to the train station 3-16. sketch map showing the existing buildings on the site (derived from Local Government Plan No.4, 2011) 3-17. sketch map showing comparing building density to open space (derived from Local Government Plan No.4, 1988) 3-18. parking spaces, pedestrian spaces and vehicular routes 3-19. fi gure ground open spaces and land use 3-20. sketch map showing the climatic analysis on site |xiv 3.21. sketch map of transport nodes (derived from Surveyor General Diagram 2011) 3-22. sketch map showing movement of public transport users (derived from Surveyor General Diagram 2011) 3.23. sketch map showing pedestrian movement within the city (derived from Surveyor General Diagram 2011) 3-24. sketch map showing travelling distances(derived from Surveyor General Diagram 2011) 3.25. sketch map showing Bulawayo’s main routes (derived from Surveyor General Diagram 2011) 3-26. sketch map showing pedestrian movement on site (derived from Surveyor General Diagram 2011) 3-27. sketch map showing vehicular movement on site (derived from Surveyor General Diagram 2011) 3-28. the main parking lot 3.29. a dilapidated door 3-30. parcel counter 3-31. a passenger sleeping on a bench 3-32. the parking lot in front the main entrance to the train station 3-33. an empty commuter dining hall 3-34. birds eye view of the loading docks (www.throughtheireye.co.uk) 3-35. the gautrain rail route in gauteng(after www.gautrain.co.za) 3-36. the location of the station is disconnected from the city 4-0. the project’s design strategy 4-1. a comparative study of fi gure ground patterns of Le Corbusier’s Ville Radieuse with the city blocks patterns of Paris, New York and Buenos Aires. Th e cities’ free fl owing grid layouts were inspired by Functionalist theorists.(Trancik 1986:104) 4-2. the three urban theories (source: Trancik 1986:98) 4-3. a sketch showing how the train station can be re-connected to the city. 4-4. Shanghai’s Yangpu District in China (Kriken 2010,105-73) 4-5. the idea of the central artery as the main feeder of activities (Kriken 2010,105-73) 4-6. the technology hub’s plaza leading to the social heart of the street (Kriken 2010,105-73) |xv 4-7. looking onto the restored historic stadiums (Kriken 2010,105-73) 4-8. Kaohsiung Port Station, Taiwan (Kaohsiung City Government’s Urban Development Bureau 2009:30) 4-9. bird’s eye view of the port station (AGER Group’s Winning Kaohsiung Port Station Proposal, 2011) 4-10. urban plan layout of the station (AGER Group’s Winning Kaohsiung Port Station Proposal, 2011) 4-11. artistic impressions of the urban renewal scheme (AGER Group’s Winning Kaohsiung Port Station Proposal, 2011) 4-12. conceptual diagram of the site’s existing problems and links 4-13. conceptual diagram of the site’s potential link patterns 4-14. conceptual diagram of potential areas of development 4-15. conceptual diagram of the links patterns 4-16. further development of link ideas 4-17. proposed site layout option 1 4-18. proposed site layout option 2 4-19. proposed pedestrian movement 4-20. proposed motor vehicle movement 4-21. proposed bus movement 4-22. proposed taxi movement 4-23. fi nal urban planning layout 4-24. perspectives of the site around the station 5-5. images of commuter rituals at Bulawayo Train Station 5-6. commuter rituals at Bulawayo 5-7. context layout (after Google maps 2011) 5-8. visual linkages and spaces of activity 5-9. sketch diagram showing pedestrian activity in relation to the site’s vehicular and rail movement 5-10. upper level entrance |xvi 5-11. sketch section through Park Station 5-12. commuter ritual at Marabastaad Taxi Rank 5-13. block C west entrance tower (Leading Architecture 2002:41) 5-14. night view from Sauer street 5-15. ground fl oor plan (Leading Architecture 2002:42) 5-16. analysis of metro mall taxi rank 5-17. temporary facilities that are still providing a service for commuter rituals. (Croeser 2005:43) 5-18. traders are in close proximity to commuter activity from the street and inside. (Croeser 2005:43) 5-20. context plan and site circulation (Digest 2011:32) 5-21. concept development (Italian Pavilion @ Shanghai Expo 2010 ) 5-22. context plan and plans (Italian Pavilion @ Shanghai Expo 2010 ) 5-23. the programme layout (Th e Channel Tunnel Rail Link 2008:6) 5-24. ground fl oor plan - concourse level (van Uff elen, C, 2010) 5-25. entrance view of glass and steel (van Uff elen, C, 2010) 5-26. bird’s eye view of the train station (Th e Channel Tunnel Rail Link 2008:11) 6-1. summary of design concept 6-2. concept development inspired by site movement 6-3. application of design concept to building 6-6. programme analysis of existing and proposed station 6-7. sketch diagrams of commuter circulation 6-8. layout option 1 6-9. layout option 2 6-10. diagram showing space analogy of the new station 6-11. programme layout of the new station - ground fl oor plan |xvii 6-12. programme layout of the new station - fi rst fl oor plan 6-13. commuter movement at ground level 6-14. commuter movement at fi rst fl oor level 6-15. sketches showing form development 6-16. sketches showing points of access 6-17. form inspired by movement 6-18. sketches of the building 6-19. sketches showing roof transformation 6-20. the old train station - front view 6-21. the new train station - inner shell 6-22. the new train station - outer shell 6-23. overall building system 6-24. winter and summer temperature eff ects on the building 6-25. sketch section through the old and new train station showing natural heating and cooling strategies for summer and winter 6-26. sketch section through the old and new train station showing lighting strategies for summer and winter 6-27. proposed drainage system 7-0. urban framework layout 7-1. context plan 7-2. circulation - context plan 7-3. bus, taxi, pedestrian and motor vehicle movement 7-4. site perspectives 7-5. ground fl oor plan 7-6. circulation - ground fl oor plan 7-7. fi rst fl oor plan |xviii 7-8. circulation - fi rst fl oor plan 7-9. section a-a and section b-b 7-10. section a-a 7-11. section b-b 7-12. north and south elevation 7-13. east elevation and perspectives 7-14. looking onto north elevation entrance 7-15. physical model of urban framework 7-16. physical model looking from existing downtown retail 7-17. physical model looking from the cooling towers opposite the main road 13th avenue 7-18. physical model of the new station 8-0. sketches show the process of adding the new building to the existing structure (Etherington 2008) 8-1. to double the museum’s volume, a rustic steel cladding to blend with the old building’s old brick. Th e new structure sits on the existing building though supported by the well hidden steel structural system. (Etherington 2008) 8-2. the section through the building the shows how the cladding system starts on the thick brick facade separating the two worlds created above ground and below ground. (Etherington 2008) 8-3. the building and ground act as background for the remains of the church walls and activity of the people in the courtyard whilst the new building sits on the old sacristy. (Entry 1197 1997) 8-4. main view from the entrance and inside the main foyer 8-5. analysis of examples 8-6. cross sectional sketches of the old and new station 8-7. sketches showing structural analysis of transitional space 8-8. fi nal sketch details of transitional space |1 1 INTRODUCTION “Bodily movement is important in creating place; conceptualising space as movement than a container.” (Low and Zuniga 2003:5) |2 o b j e c t i v e Th e relevance of this design thesis is to re-establish commuter rail transport as a reliable source of public transport through the re-use of an under-used train station. Th e author questions ways in which unused urban pieces of land can be reconnected back to the city centre. Th e objects to be studied are successful transport systems in developing and developed countries as a reference to understand how they use commuter rituals. Th e signifi cance of the investigation will help realise ways in which rail transport can become a safer and more effi cient mode of transport in potentially growing nations and simultaneously re-conventionalising transport nodes as places people can go to and not go through. Th e author’s intentions are to identify the problems with rail transport in the city of Bulawayo, Zimbabwe and how these problems aff ect the nation and the broader context of Africa. After understanding the problems at hand, I want to make an analysis of whether the site is theoretically a ‘lost place’ as understood by urban theorist Rodger Trancik (1986) and how viewing places of transit as ‘non places’ Marc Augé (1995) could be a likely cause of lost place. Th ey have both been classifi ed as urban problems that are as a result of the poor principles of the modern movement. In order to ’fi nd’ these ‘lost places’ I hope to use theories that can help re-link rail transport into the heart of the city and adopt ways of attracting diff erent types of commuters to use rail transport as it is a safe and effi cient mode of mass transport, a step in Zimbabwe yet to be realised as a sustainable move to good urban living. By seamlessly connecting a lost place back into the city through the use of commuter rituals. Th e author hopes to create and resuscitate a socially inactive transport node into a place that people can go to and not just a place to go through. |3 site Th e site is in Bulawayo, Zimbabwe’s second largest city, laid out on gridiron pattern with the roads crossing perpendicular to the streets. Each city block is 6500 m2 and serviced by a fi ve metre wide central lane. Th e business district is found in the heart of the city and surrounded by low to medium density housing from the north east to the south west of the city and the industrial zone towards the south west to the western area of the city. Th e station is within this zone but detached from the city centre and mostly transporting people working in the industries and those staying in the low income housing area in the north eastern areas of the city. Th e location of the rail station is unfortunately at the border of Bulawayo’s business district; however this is no reason for it not to be included in the urban landscape. In fact, rail transport is the embodiment of Zimbabwe’s main resource disseminator and human distributor. By invigorating a new spirit, the author strongly believes that this will stimulate the growth of new urban centres and peripheries around its networks locally, and regionally Th ere was limited data on the train’s traveling timetable and statistics pertaining to a number of passengers in the last ten years. Th e railway’s Drawing Department was also not as useful in providing the author with existing drawing plans except for the station’s ground fl oor plan. |4 Anthropologists have understood spaces to be connected to the analysis of natural landscapes and material conditions connected to place. Th is dimension has shifted their interests to geography, history, philosophy and sociology and how they infl uence the material and spatial aspects of the culture of a place. Any city has its own urban culture that makes it particularly unique as they are shaped by the material and spatial patterns of inhabitant communities. Th e author intends to paint a vivid description of the site’s geographical, historical and sociological culture for the reader to understand the problems associated with the site and how this picture is shaped by the city’s location, economy, political and historical forces as controlling forces. To capture this data, the author hopes to use primary and secondary resources related to the site getting interviews from diff erent users of the transport node to understand the success and shortcomings of railway transport. Th e site of study has become a pocket of stagnant space with little urban use. As the author studied the material culture of the site in relation to its urban counterparts, the author thought it was vital to understand if it has really become a lost space. Urban centres designed from the onset of the modern movement were structured on the treatment of buildings as isolated objects in a landscape without the realisation that these buildings constantly interact with each other and man. When they do not consider the city’s ‘paths’,‘edges’, ‘districts’, ‘nodes’ and ‘landmarks’ as the main threads between human experience and these ’urban objects’, many pockets of dead places occur. Lost places make no positive contribution to the city and they fail to connect to the urban fabric in a coherent manner. In the architect’s eye there should be a tremendous opportunity in redeveloping lost places into creative urban in-fi lls. Th e author questioned whether any of these causes applied to the site and if non places are also likely causes of lost places. Non places are places that have become strange; places that are part of our daily course of life and have become unavoidable such as the garage station to fuel your car or the shopping mall to restock on food supply. literature review |5 Marc Augé (2005) explores the need to imbue meaning in the world, how the excess of space can somehow induce a sense of disassociation only marginally compensated by nostalgia. Spaces which are un-relational, un-historical and not concerned with identity such as airports, hotels and train stations are defi ned as non place. Augé (1995) questions the extent to which the experience of a space is tied directly to the objective conditions of that space and to what extent the objective conditions of a space can be separated from the subjective experience of that space. Is there something in non places that one cannot experience in the same way as ordinary places? Th erefore, it, means there is a social force lacking in non places as he goes on to say that non places are not anthropological and do not integrate earlier places. Th e author questions whether Bulawayo’s transport nodes qualify to be repetitions of non-places and once the train station has been restored how can the author stop it from being a non place? Urban centres are containers for diff erent groups of bodily movement and transport nodes facilitate the highest collection of bodily movement in one place in order to transport people from one point to the other. As the body moves, there is a metaphorical transformation of experience to symbol and to remake experience to an object such as an artefact, a gesture, an activity or a word, objects are used to evoke those experiences thus molding experience into symbols and back into experience. Th ese can be in the form of signages, art pieces to even public seating spaces. Th is is one of the ideas that the author will use to ‘fi nd’ lost places. Commuter rituals will be used to re-activate bodily movement, social interactions and spatial re-use. Th is method of approach can be used to restore lost place and prove that non places are still places with anthropological connections. Th e provision of the following spaces for a start will be: a street market for informal street trade, secure ticket sales points and control centre, a public toilet facility, open air meeting places, an overnight facilities for long distance cross border traders and those travelling to other towns, a history/tourist guide centre, adequate seating area for arrival and departure, private waiting lounges, eating and dining facilities, rail museum and a rail park, informal and formal retail space, administration offi ces,and children’s play area and a few arts and craft retail spaces. |6 6 CHAPTER 1 context “I confront the city with my body; my legs measure the length of the arcade and the width of the square; my gaze unconsciously projects my body onto the facade of the cathedral, where it roams over the mouldings and contours, sensing the size of the recesses and projections; my body weight meets the mass of the cathedral door; and my hand grasps the door pull as I enter the dark void behind. I experience myself in the city, and the city exists through my embodied experience. Th e city and my body supplement and defi ne each other.” (Pallasmaa 1994:26) |7 REVITALISATION OF PUBLIC TRANSPORT IN ZIMBABWE PUBLIC RAIL TRANSPORT IN BULAWAYO NEWTRANSPORT HUB - OLD BULAWAYOTRAIN STATION NEW URBANTRANSPORT FRAMEWORK FOR BULAWAYO thesis overview |8 i n t r o d u c t i o n Urbanisation and transportation are the most infl uential determiners of Zimbabwe’s city growth patterns. Th e local government has seen the importance of providing effi cient public transport systems and maintaining them because of the unforeseen pressure of the population increase. Foreign investors have shown keen interest in providing fi nance to help meet the government goal. Th e city of Bulawayo has been selected as one of the cities that need an improved public transport network through the resuscitation of public rail transport |9 rail transport in Zimbabwe Transport creates valuable links between regions and economic activities and between people and the rest of the world. It has been internationally accepted as a multi-dimensional activity that has put many cities on the map, including Bulawayo. Bulawayo has grown to be a major industrial centre owing to the growth of the rail network system. Th e development of transport networks in Zimbabwe was concomitant with the British colonisation of the country from the 1890s. Road and rail network and other transport links to most parts of Zimbabwe were growing fast soon after the country’s independence. Today the National Railways of Zimbabwe (NRZ)’s rail network covers over 3,000 km of track providing passenger and freight services. Th e rail track connects the major urban centres of Harare (the current capital city of Zimbabwe), Bulawayo, Gweru, Victoria Falls and Mutare. Several countries in Southern Africa; South Africa, Botswana, Zambia all the way to the Indian ocean in Maputo, Mozambique, are also served by the same rail network (fi g 1 ). Th e fi rst rail track was built in Bulawayo in 1897 and linked to Mafi keng, South Africa in the Cape Province, on a 3-ft. 6-inch gauge. By 1990, 1,575 km of rail track was managed through a centralised train control system, and 311 km of track was electrifi ed (Kunaka 1991:3). Today Zimbabwe’s rail network consists of both electrifi ed and non- electrifi ed sections where the motive power fl eet are run by electric and diesel locomotives, whilst steam engines are reserved for local and national safari tours, a growing tourist attraction. Unfortunately, electricity is used only along the rail track between Gweru and Harare, as shown in red on image 1-0, due to the nation’s recurrent limited supply revitalisation of rail transport in Zimbabwe |10 of electricity. Both electric and diesel locomotives travel at speeds of around 90km/h and according to a rail engineer at the NRZ the maximum never exceeds 110km/h. Th e freight services off ered by the rail company include the import and export trade and the domestic trade of mainly coal, oil and motor vehicles. Th rough the 1980s, NRZ experienced management problems, along with fi nancial and train maintenance problems which led to what Kunaka (1991) referred to as “the coal crisis of the railways” between the years 1988 and 1989; a period where coal was in short supply. Freight services declined from 18 million tonnes worth of goods in 1998 to 2 million tonnes in 2010. Th e railways passenger service was initiated by the founders of the rail system in Bulawayo which was later introduced in other cities of Zimbabwe. Th e service was limited to the black population that worked for the railways and those in the industrial and manufacturing industry (Kunaka 1991:4). Th ese workers lived in the high density suburbs near the railway station in the western area of Bulawayo, an area zoned for black people separating them from the white people living in lush eastern suburbs. After Zimbabwe gained independence in 1980, the black population in cities grew rapidly into the areas previously inhabited by whites (Kunaka 1991), and until today the passenger services haves still yet not expanded to cater for those living in these areas previously occupied by the whites. |11 diesel run rail route electric run rail route site study area capital city main urban centres 1-0. rail network in Zimbabwe (after Surveyor General map 2011) |12 urbanisation and transportation in Zimbabwe By 1975, it was estimated that a third of the world’s population lived in the urban areas. In 2000, the population living in urban areas increased to almost 50% and it is estimated that by 2025 two thirds will be living in urban areas (World Development Report, 2000).Population growth was caused by the rapid migration from rural and small urban centres to the bigger cities soon after the country attained independence in 1980. Similarly, rapid patterns of urbanisation were happening in the cities of the developing countries especially in Africa and by the 1980s, urbanisation growth rates for Kenya, Tanzania, and Zimbabwe were recorded to be 7.7%, 6.6% and 5.9% respectively. Bulawayo’s population has grown from 621,742 in 1992, to an estimated 1,500,000 in 2009 and possibly more. Munzwa and Wellington from Department of Rural and Urban Planning, University of Zimbabwe in their research on the Urban Development in Zimbabwe (2010) talk about how the country’s government tried to make eff orts to curb urban overgrowth by making sure that the district service centres harboured some small-scale industries, in addition to agro-processing industrial units to try expand the economic opportunities for the locals living in the district centres, however, these economic initiatives have failed to reduce the migration patterns from the district centres. Th e rise is attributed to peri-urban migration patterns as returning Zimbabweans migrating back to Bulawayo from other countries, especially from South Africa; a side eff ect of the world economic recession. 1-1. lorries are even being used to ferry people as a form of public transport (Mbara 2005:124) 1-2. passengers doing last minute shopping by a nearby supermarket in Harare (Mbara 2005:124) |13 Th e population increase in urban centres brought on profound pressure on the public transport system in the country. With the growing population living in Zimbabwe’s main cities from the mid-1990s, the local government saw the need for a convenient and reliable public urban transport system. Th ese eff orts were made through implementing transport policies that allowed the allocation of a fl eet of government-owned public transport facilitators in the form of bus companies such as the Zimbabwe United Passenger Company (ZUPCO) and the privatisation of some informal private transporters with a fl eet of emergency taxis; commuter omni-buses (termed as kombis in Zimbabwe) that ferry a maximum of 15 people a trip. Over time, especially from 1999, public transport services in Zimbabwe in urban and rural areas declined as these government funded vehicles deteriorated faster than anticipated. Th ey were reaching the end of their economic life too soon and as the country’s economy was declining, the government was and currently is still unable to replace them (1-2 and 1-3). Zimbabwe’s domestic and international commuters, especially those in the cross-border trade, have become a ready market urgently seeking the attention of a good transport system. Transport systems “support the livelihood activities of the growing urban population” (Mbara 2005:125) in the form of mass transportation system. In the last ten years the private automobile has taken over this existing market. People have “resorted to devising coping strategies to travel to work and home” (Mbara 2005:124) because of the escalating costs of other modes of transport. Long hours of waiting and walking distances characterise today’s urban public transport situation. By July 2000, the government re-introduced domestic and international passenger train services in Harare, Zimbabwe’s capital city, and Bulawayo in an attempt to reduce the problems of public transport in the county’s urban areas. Th e rail service is unfortunately limited to serving nearby low income residential suburbs. Using the train public transport has become the cheapest form of public transport though widely accepted by most commuters in Zimbabwe as unsafe compared to the other forms of public transport available in the cities. Mbara (2005) says that rail transport is an aff ordable and appropriate solution to Zimbabwe’s public transport. Due to severe fuel shortages, the challenge |14 that NRZ now faces is the need of ‘infrastructure’ to increase the rail network and improve other ‘train facilities’ that enhance safety and comfort for users. As a way of increasing fi nancial stability in the crippled parastatal, steam locomotives were added for rail leisure safari trips, targeting mainly tourists. Th e demands for tourist rail trails have reached a level of 300 passengers in one trip, though this demand is seasonal and will not provide enough fi nances to meet the demand for an aff ordable, convenient and socially inclusive public commuter rail network system. Th e causes of this diminishing industry are highly attributed to the socio-economic and political environment, re-investing in the infrastructural development of transport systems can counteract the causes in the long term. According to the Global Times online news (2009), Zimbabwe was working on expanding the existing passenger and freight services to minimize running time and to meet emerging regional economic and trade dynamics. Transport, Communication and Infrastructure Development Minister Nicholas Goche said Zimbabwe is constantly being introduced to new economic opportunities and the country now requires an effi cient railway system. |15 publ ic t Upon looking at except for those the map. There a bus terminus an terminuses, unfo SOUTH AFRICA BOTSWANA d r s o p o t a m luve ve rd vic fa ll rd eert mulp dr 13th ave esigodini rd hillside rd gwanda rd dr erarah CITY CENTRE e pass nger s rvice to luveve and e emganwini ZAMBIA public transport in Bulawayo, Zimbabawe Upon looking at this map, the rail network does not serve the greater populace of Bulawayo but mainly those living in the north western suburbs of Emganwini and Luveve as shown on the map. Th ere are short distance taxi ranks, short distance bus terminuses and long distance bus terminus and one long distance mini bus rank the city. Th e long distance bus termini, unfortunately, have now been abandoned and consequently taken over by the emergency taxis. Fortunately the local council is looking to introduce mini-buses to service shuttle routes within the city, mainly to aid in the effi cient distribution between transport nodes. Long distance bus Terminus Short distance Taxi rank Informal hitchhiking point for Bulawayo destinations Bulawayo train station Informal hitchhiking point for National and International destinations Existing transport nodes Short distance Taxi rank (Old short distance bus terminus) Intercity bus Terminal Train station 1-4. public transport routes in Bulawayo (derived from Surveyor General Diagram 2011) |16 new urban transport for Bulawayo, Zimbabwe 1.5. Renkini Long distance bus 1-6. City Hall Bus stop A new public transport framework has been proposed for Bulawayo’s existing urban transportation network to sustain the demand for short and long distance travel within and beyond the country’s borders. NRZ seeks to expand the existing local and international passenger service by increasing the existing rail network for a more effi cient public transport system in Bulawayo to sustain the current and emerging future population growth pattern. Accessible transport systems are a catalyst for urban integration and urban development and by implementing a new and more effi cient public transport network, social and economic systems will develop by increasing the circulation of people, information and goods are effi ciently circulating in and out of the city and the country. Th e type of destination routes that NRZ plan to include in the new urban transport framework will cover the intracity route (a new rail network connecting the train station to the industrial sector of the city and the surrounding residential areas of Bulawayo), intercity route (a new rail network connecting the train station to all the cities and towns of Zimbabwe) and the national route (a new rail network connecting the train station to the countries within and around the SADC region of Africa). Th is is illustrated on the map in 1-7. Th e new rail network expansion will require a new transport hub for the city, one that is designed for the people, catering for the people and their urban social needs. NRZ is planning to revitalise the existing railway station into a new socially active transport hub that will indirectly stimulate the re-use of the |17 bulawayo B 3 2 4 1 intercity routeintercity route intra city routeintra city route international routeinternational route 1-7. a new rail transport framework for Bulawayo showing the diff erent phases of priority. the fi rst phase looks at servicing the city’s industrial sector, whilst the 2nd looks to service the high density residential area prior to the medium and low residential areas in phase 3 and 4 (derived from Local Government Plan No.4, 2011) |18 train as a form of public transport and which will also indirectly activate other existing transport nodes in Bulawayo such as ‘Renkini’ Long distance bus terminus (1-5), the City Hall Bus Stop (1-6) and the urban space surrounding the train station’s downtown precinct into a newly re-zoned destination for all walks of life. A new bus shuttle will be added to connect commuters in the city to the train station to operate on a daily timetable. Th is will in the long term, encourage urban development within the city. Th e proposal on the following page takes into consideration the ideal future urban growth foreseen for the city. Learning from the case study in Bloemfontein, the proposed rail network will channel off from the existing rail route round the city’s neighbourhood cutting through some of the existing main roads. Drop off points have been added at points where the road and rail track cross nearby a place of high pedestrian activity. Th ese places also consider - potential housing demands within the area, - activity nodes such as shopping mall and nearby existing taxi ranks or terminuses, - the feasibility of the inclusion of the rail track within the area. |19 area of potential economic growth existing area within the city area of potential urban h 1-7. proposed new rail network for the city of Bulawayo (derived from Local Government Plan No. 5, 2011) area of potential economic growth existing area within the city area of potential urban growth main road system existing rail route proposed rail route proposed drop off points |20 Th e site that has been set aside for a new transport hub is shown below demarcating the area that is going to be re- zoned and the area for the new train station. urban framework 1-8. site map showing the location fo the new train station and the area to be rezoned (derived from Local Government Plan No.4, 2011)0 50 100m 200m 300m a r e a f o r a r c h i t e c t u r a l i n t e r v e n t i o n a r e a d e d i c a t e d f o r r e - z o n i n g |21 Urbanisation is an urban phenomena that is currently changing Bulawayo into a potentially economically driven industrial centre. Th e urban growth expected for the city in the next twenty to thirty years would demand a well planned public transport system especially after its failure in the early 1990s. Re-investing in rail transport will contribute to the country’s manufacturing, mining and commercial industries growing as well as the effi cient distribution of the workforce that will sustain it. A new transport hub will not only improve the public transport network in the city but promote the development of the city‘s economy. However the city’s train station was not designed for the population the new urban transport framework is expected to cater for. Its architectural condition does not match the qualities expected of a new destination point for local and international travelers too. Th e theory enquiry in the proceeding chapter will help explain the causes of the train station’s current condition and how understanding the material culture of the place will further explain the problems associated with the site in relation to the city and the country. c o n c l u s i o n |22 22 “Th e urban gaps are the forgotten emptiness, the sound of silence in the contemporary city.” ( Franinovic 2008) CHAPTER 2 theory investigation |23 non place PLACE problems definition lost place thesis overview |24 Urban centers designed from the onset of the modern age were structured around the treatment of buildings as isolated objects in a landscape without recognising that these buildings interact with each other and man. Pockets of dead spaces developed as some of these buildings failed to connect to the urban fabric in the most coherent way. Such places have been termed lost places (Trancik:1984). Lost places is a term associated with either leftover unstructured urban land or places away from pedestrian activity, whilst non-places are characterised as places that people go through and not go to. As the author defi nes the causes and problems normally associated with lost places, she will confi rm how non places can contribute to the decay of urban spaces. Th e site to be studied is in the surroundings of an old rail station located in the city of Bulawayo, the location of the head parastatal - National Railways of Zimbabwe (NRZ). Over the last few decades, the place has slowly become under-used and abandoned. Th is chapter looks to understanding why this has happened . int roduct ion |25 defi nition Urban centres from the modern age treated buildings as isolated objects in a landscape without considering possible future urban patterns, human behaviour and how the spaces between buildings would interact with each other. Th e theory of lost places, as described by the theorist Rodger Trancik, describes that such places transform into “left over unstructured landscape at the base of high-rise towers; away form the major fl ow of pedestrian activity in the city; surface parking lots that ring the urban core or sever the major connections between the commercial centre and the residential areas.” (Trancik 1986:3) Lost places make no positive contribution to the surrounding users and over time they transform into being the anti- spaces of cities where no man wants to be seen in. Th ough they are ill defi ned, lots places can off er opportunities for urban redevelopment for cities like Bulawayo. Architects should start seeing opportunities of redeveloping creative in-fi lls within these places. Lost spaces, as under-used and deteriorated as they may be, can “provide exceptional opportunities to reshape an urban centre, ... attract people back downtown and counteract sprawl and surburbanisation” (Trancik 1986:2). Lost places are caused by the following factors: - the automobile, - land uses and zoning -policies - treatment of open space by architects of the Modern Movement - lack of responsibility by the private and public sector over the public urban environment - abandonment of industrial, military and transportation sites in the city’s inner core lost place |26 Th e automobile has taken over public space within the city and diluted the potential cultural meaning and human purpose of these spaces all for the convenience of mobility. land use and zoning policies of the modern era were well intentional as misguided as their policies led to urban decay. Th ey cleared the ground, sanitised and promoted human welfare by segregating land uses into discrete zones. Th ey localised high rise towers that overshadowed low rise residential precincts whilst confusing vehicular and pedestrian systems in the busy inner city cores. 2-0. orlando commuter rail station birds eye view (Th rough their eyes, 2011) 2-1. the densifi cation of the business district over- shadowing a low rise residential precinct (Th rough their eyes, 2011) |27 Th e treatment of open space involved the under-design of open spaces in the city. Th ey were inspired by the utilitarian ideals of the nineteenth century concentrating on composition and organisation centred primarily more on function from the external space as compared to the organisation of internal space. Th e building was more like an object separate from its context. abandoning industrial and transport spaces is one of the many urban phenomena that are still happening today. Local municipalities still do not take responsibility in the re-use of old industrial buildings nor see them as places of redevelopment. 2-3. to your right is an aerial view of Massena District in Paris, France this industrial area had become obsolete next to active business and residential neighbourhoods (Our cities themselves 2010:36) 2-1. the diagrams above, to the left shows the public rooms in the city, all at their diff erent scales generally found at water canals or pedestrian intersections. the spatial order of the city is shown in the fi gure ground on the right, showing the ideal balance between built space to the open space (source: Dewar and Todeschini 1996:104) Th e plan of Venice, Italy showing the relation between open space and built space |28 defi nition Another possible cause of lost places that Trancik does not mention, looks at places of transit like Bulawayo’s train station as a place that people can merely go through. Such places according to Marc Augé’(1994), are termed as ‘non places’. Th ey are normally associated with “strange places”; places that are part of our daily course of life that have become unavoidable like the garage station where one pours fuel into one’s car or the shopping mall to restock on food supply. Augé’s hypothesis explains how super-modernity produces non-places where super-modernity is a perception based on the logic of excess of overabundance is seen as robbing meaning from space through overinvesting meaning in our daily activities (Bolon 2009) Place is relational, historical and concerned with identity whilst non places are not defi ned as relational, historical nor concerned with identity. Augé further questions the need to imbue meaning in the world, and “how the excess of space can somehow induce a sense of disassociation only marginally compensated by nostalgia” (Augé 1994:78).Excess of space occur over time, space and ego and they each have their individual impacts on the world. Bolon’s understanding of time comes from the rise of explicit and pressing daily needs for humans to give meaning to the world and to understand the present in its entirety, thus investing major interest and signifi cance in the present to the detriment of the recent past, which is then seen as lacking in non place 2-4. Th e idea of a transit node with no anthropological reference |29 2-5. text in the form of signages in transport nodes have become prescriptive or informative navigators in space (Sunita ram 2006) meaning. Space associates itself with the ‘shrinking of the planet ’(Augé 1995:31) impersonated in diff ering scales; through the propagation of imagery and manifesting in faster and more effi cient transport systems. Non-places are located in a world where transit points and temporal abodes occur; in places under luxurious or inhumane conditions (hotels, squatter camps); where there is a dense network of movement in which inhabited spaces are developing; a world of unmediated commerce through the use of credit card machines; a world thus surrendered to solitary individuality. Such places are “not anthropological and do not integrate earlier places”(Augé 1994:78). Augé questions the extent at which the experience of a space is tied directly to the objective conditions of that space and to what extent the objective conditions of a space can be separated from the subjective experience of that space. Is there something in non places that one cannot experience in the same way in any other place? Non-places contain two complementary yet distinct realities; the relations that the individuals have with these spaces and that these spaces are formed in relation to certain ends (transport, transit, commerce, leisure). Augé states that anthropological places are organically social and non-places create solitary contractility. Th ere are no forms of social connections or a distinct spirit of culture within these places also termed as ‘end points’. Th e only form of attachment the individual has to the space is through the mediation of words. Text has the power to create images through the individual’s imagination suffi ciently isolating themselves from the place. |30 Th e author does not agree that all places of transit have no anthropological connections. Augé does not talk about the signifi cance of non-place to those that work in these places. Th e individual that uses places of transit every day, commuting to work and home, does not become the spectator. As place reconstitutes itself, the individual and the place become one; the spectacle and the space transforms into a container of journeys within itself fabricating a unique hybrid of social relations out of the familiar. If the average human being spends a larger portion of his time in transit than he spends in his own house, and if place is understood to be encrusted with historical monuments and creative social life, then a form of anthropology is manifested within places of transit. Treating places of transit as mere voids of inactivity; as dead ends between journeys of arrival and departure is what led the train station to its present condition. If the new transport hub is redesigned into the city’s potential urban and social artefact, the site can become Bulawayo’s new point of reference. Non-places are characterised as places that people go through, however, places of transit can be re-programmed to become special transitory points of arrival and departure; places subconsciously programmed to mentally prepare one for the next journey. In that respect, the author understands that places of transit can potentially be places that people can go to. Th e thesis will now investigate whether Bulawayo’s train station is a lost place and whether any of the causes of the lost places apply to the reason why the station is being under-used in the next chapter. To understand these causes in relation to the station, a brief account of the existing conditions, history and the context of the site will be examined. Th ese, along with the relevance of non-place will be explained in the next chapter and an overall picture of the problems associated with the site of study will be surfaced in-order to understand what problems need to be solved to revitalise the station. c o n c l u s i o n |31 31 CHAPTER 3 finding place in a lost place |32 THEORY ENQUIRY non place PLACE thesis overview |33 i n t r o d u c t i o n Th e Bulawayo train station is being under-used for a number of reasons that will be discussed in this chapter, though the main reason the station is under-used is a factor of distance. Understanding the material culture of the site will aid in identifying the problems associated with the station. Th e place is suff ocating from pedestrian activity as a result of the place being nestled away in the junk yards of the dying chains of the Bulawayo’s industrial belt. As good as hidden, Bulawayo’s only train station has found itself lost within the city. Th e author will fi rstly analyse how understanding the material culture (Low and Zuniga: 2003) helps explain an account of the problems associated with the station and they will help with coming up with design solutions to ‘fi nd’ the place. |34 material culture defi nition Th e context of a place can be expressed in its material experiences and social interactions. In-so-doing, one would be expressing the material culture of the place. Material culture is a term that refers to the relationship between artifacts and social relations of a specifi c place. Anthropologists normally describe material culture as a series of collapsed acts and signs of what could happen if the acts were carried out to completion. People respond to objects on the basis of what those objects mean and the meaning of these objects arises out of the negotiated ‘material’ experience and social interaction in a place (Blumer 1969:79). Th rough the ‘objectifi cation’ of our subjective experience and using social interaction, material culture is not simply there like an object of nature, structuring our movements by its mere physicality. It is expressed by dramatistic qualities attributed to the collection of words and images so it becomes a ‘scene’, or better expressed, an opened visual text whose narrative we read. Describing the material experience at the rail station is paramount to understanding the causes that steered it to its present state. Whilst images produce qualitative data, Low and Zuniga ( 2003) affi rm the additional use of text together to bring a unity of being-in-the-text. Images and text jointly assist in showing how one moves from being- the-reader into being-in-the-world (i.e understanding a situation by using text and images). For a reader that does not understand the context of a place, material culture helps paint and defragment the mystics of a place in three distinct components: 1. Th e material component Th is is the descriptive account of a setting and it defi nes the place’s limits in terms of its physical and thematic features to surrounding communities. |35 2. Th e interaction component Th is looks at the behavioural qualities of the people within and around the setting and how they interact with each other. 3. Inscribed spaces Th e relationships between the people and the places they occupy. 4. Th e image component Th is is the material image of the emerging situation of a place; a collective word summarising the other three components that describe the situation of the place being analysed. |36 material component Bulawayo has a unique culture shaped by the material and spatial patterns of its inhabitant communities. Th e materiality of the train station can be consciously mapped by seeing the quality of urban life in the city. Visiting Bulawayo is like stepping back into the past. Th e eclectic mix of cultures from the wide spread traditions of the Ndebele people of Bulawayo to the showered works of the British expressed in the city’s layout to architecture of modern styles of post -independence (3.0-3.2). “Gleaming high rise buildings border Bulawayo’s wide streets, designed so an ox wagon could make a full turn in the road. Th e modern architectural structures in the city centre contrast with the quaint colonial-style houses in the avenues. Although the two building styles represent two diff erent eras the eclectic blend works, and is symbolic of Africa’s often turbulent past.” (Todd 2009¶1) Th e city of Bulawayo was founded on King Lobengula’s kraal and became the fi rst position of the white man’s camp. Th ey built shelter for themselves using inconceivable materials from the likes of corrugated iron sheets to grass and mud; all salvaged from Lobengula’s abandoned town. Bulawayo was declared a town in 1894, a municipality in 1897 and fi nally a city in 1943. It was designed in a grid pattern surrounded by park lands by the town planner Patrick Fletcher. Th e old planning layout is similar to layouts used in some cities in South Africa like Bloemfontein and Polokwane (previously named Pietersburg) and in India like Delhi and Bombay: both British colonies. Towns laid on a grid pattern are closely inspired by the ancient Greek Planning, credited to designer, Hippodamus shown on the map 3-3. New Delhi’s urban planning appears to be systematically organic where the city centre was designed in a grid pattern and the rest of the town grew organically, a growth pattern that occurred soon after India’s early |37 3-0. modern architecture in Bulawayo 3-2. Bulawayo is characterised by the wide streets, wide enough for an ox cart to make a full turn 3-1. Bulawayo’s beautiful skyline |38 bloemfontein - SOUTH AFRICA new delhi, INDIA cityscape A main roads legend rail network central business district; area indicates the origins of Patrick Fletcher’s grid lay out the railway network does not penetrate into the CBD but goes round the city centre into some residential areas and out to other cities. It is connected to the other modes of public transport in the city. location of site area outside the central business district grew organically after independent country main roads lege d rail network 3-3. Comparison of Bulawayo city planning to Bloemfontein, and New Delhi (after Local Government Plan No.4, 2011) Th e general urban layout of Bloemfontein is in a grid pattern, similar to Bulawayo’s city layout. Th e main road system feeds heavy vehicles from the city centre whilst the rail network routes does not pen- etrate the city. To the outer periphery of the city centre is the train station and most park space is away from the city centre as in Bulawayo. Colonial references are still visible and have become part of the identity of the city. Th e diff erent heights in the built-scape produced from the straight grid pattern closely resemble Bulawayo’s eclectic architectural features “...the chaos and clutter of scores of people dart- ing about in their own chosen direction, forming inexplicably complex, web-like traffi c patterns...” penetrate through straight lines of the urban threads of street life you could almost “... nervously weave around mail parcels, coolie trolleys and vendors with mobile handcarts, with one motive in mind: to catch the train before it leaves the station.” (Sunita Ram 2001:1) Th e city’s main road system penetrate the city through a series of nodes whilst the rail network briefl y enters the city parallel to some road systems |39 independence in 1947. India claimed independence earlier than South Africa and Bulawayo hence evidence of colonial rule is not visible in New Delhi’s layout. Th e city’s rail transport network penetrates considerably deep into the city allowing easy access to the train station where as in Bloemfontein and Bulawayo, their train stations and rail system are laid out around the city. Bulawayo’s city’s land use layout shown on map 3-6 shows the train station location along the border line of the industrial zone and part of the city’s outer core in the southern down town precinct. When the Bulawayo rail venture began, the then new transport system facilitated the importation of foodstuff , building materials and other merchandise needed to build the country. By 1968 10,000 men and women worked and lived by the railway station bringing in close to 10 million pounds to the economy at that time. Bulawayo’s railway museum was the fi rst railway station in Bulawayo which was later turned into a workshop for the maintenance and refrigeration of old train wagons. Th e old station was then moved to the current station situated. Upon entering the parking area of the station to the right is a six storey structure built in 1925. It was once the headquarters for NRZ which the parastatal now uses for general offi ces for railway personnel. Th e building has gone through numerous alterations and extensions over the years and has become the home of NRZ workshop apprentices, train drivers and other railway personnel with a wide range of recreational and residential facilities in a small area behind the station, called Raylton. Th e station and the museum have both become the home for some old and retired steam engines and coaches. Some are on display in 3-4. fi rst rail fi re engine 3-5. fi rst steam locomotive engines to be used in Bulawayo, Zimbabwe |40 the railway museum with the oldest exhibits including Cecil Rhodes’ 1897 personal railway coach (3-6), preciously preserved as the most priceless antique of all the trains on display. Buildings built before 1930 have been declared heritage sites and protected by the preservation order from being demolished, however, the station and museum are yet to be acclaimed as heritage sites but the author will respect the buildings and include them as part of the new trains station as they are of architectural value. Th e physical, architectural and climatic analysis in the following pages will inform the site’s context. 3-6. Cecil Rhodes’ 1897 personal railway coach |41 1 2 l a n d u s e Figure .. images of some places in downtown area 2. there are a series of light industry and wholesale shops (source: author, 2010) Th ere are two down town precincts in the city of Bulawayo. Th e train sta- tion falls within the downtown area of number 2. Th is area of is zoned for of- fi ces, light services and wholesale, residential and ancillary services. Th is zon- ing pattern has aff ected the quality of urban life in this downtown precinct. Life is slow, not busy, quiet and no open spaces or exciting spaces of enjoyment. Th e light to heavy industrial activities border the train station. As a result, the views onto the south east are dull. According to function, the train station convenient- ly serves the industries with freight services because of their close proximity factor. 3-7. Zonal map of Bulawayo City centre and other Urban precincts (derived from Local Government Plan No.4, 2011) y s ) Government Buildings Public and Private Open space City Boundaries Down Town Precinct Industrial Precinct High density residential suburb Medium density residential suburb Low density residential suburb RESERVATIONS TYPOLOGY OF URBAN AREA Zone 2A : Offices and Public Buildings Zone 2B : Public Buildings Zone 3 : General Business and service Industry Zone 4 : Light/Service industry and Wholesale Zone 5A : Residential Zone 5B : Residential and Ancillary Zone 5C : Residential and Offices ZONES Zone 1C : Business0 shops and offices Zone 1A &1B: Business core- shops and offices 3-8. images of some places in downtown area 2. there are a series of light industry and wholesale shops land use |42 NRZ has dedicated 2-3 types of diesel locomotives for local and city to city destinations and off ers the following passenger train services; - Intercity, - Urban Commuter, - Luxury, Safari and Steam Excursion Trains, and - International services (www.nrz.co.zw 2011) Th e intercity passenger train services link all major towns and cities accommodate diff erent social classes (3-8)namely; - Sleeper class 4 or 2 sleeping bunks are a full compartment and the coach has the capacity to carry 26 passengers. Th e bedding used is availed on request and on payment of a fee. - Second class 6 and 3 sleeping bunks are a full compartment (coupe). One coach has the capacity to carry 39 passengers. - Standard class Th is is a seater class with seats. One coach has the capacity to carry 68 passengers. - Economy class Th is coach also a seater class with more seats than those in the standard class. One coach has capacity to carry 98 passengers. Th e urban commuter service operates daily except on Sundays. From Mondays to Fridays they operate thrice in the mornings and afternoons and once in the morning seating in a standard commuter train image of a luxury excursion train urban commuter train 3-8. images of some of the train services (: www.nrz.co.zw) |43 and afternoons on Saturdays to two locations in the city (3-25), Luveve and Emganwini. Th e intercity service is run mostly at night and arrives in the morning and then used for urban commuter services for the day and switched back to intercity commuter services at night. luxury excursion trains (3-8)are operated as luxury and tourist safari trains. Th ey are operated by Rovos Rail and Shongololo’s Southern Cross tours as a regular service for tourists. Both operators start their tours in South Africa with the Shongololo going through Swaziland and Mozambique before coming into Zimbabwe through Beitbridge to Victoria Falls. Passengers visit tourist attractions in all parts of Zimbabwe such as the Great Zimbabwe, Matopo National Park and Hwange Game Reserve. Steam Excursion train services are used by another group of companies for tourism in Germany called Globe Steam and Far Rail Tours. Th ey use NRZ steam locomotives and coaches to cater for their steam engine enthusiasts (3-8). Th e author questioned a few commuters found within the city on whether they know the location of the city’s train station. Ninety percent of the people interviewed were either not aware that there were commuter services running at the train station or were not sure of the train station’s location. One has the ability to navigate themselves to the station when they see the coal towers, located opposite the train station (3-12). Th e walking distance is not far but for those carrying heavy luggage, four wheeled cart carriers are used to carry the luggage. Th e arcade of trees on the road’s carriage way announce 13th avenue and normally used by large industrial trucks, the only way into the industries (3-12). Most parts of the surrounding areas of the train station are composed of old industrial facilities characterised by the grime and dirt from the individual activities. Little to no architectural identity is associated with these buildings refl ected by their dilapidated state. Th e station however, is known for its aging colonial architecture. Th e entrance gate to the station is recessed away from the main access road past the exit point, whilst a six storey building with NRZ personnel offi ces blocks the view of the station from the road (3-15). Not many commuters that travel on foot use this entrance, but prefer using the exit gate closer to the city because of its convenient access from 13th avenue. |44 e arca de of tre s entrance 6 storey building at r n e ht h r s l d l a r yn o c e l f i ne d ne ec o t d e i l omodern sti styc e for the ac n py 3-9. coal towers, a navigation point to the station 3-12. down town precinct leading to the train 3-15. entrance to the train station 3-11. one of the industrial sites around the train station 3-10. main entrance to train station Victorian architecture aged with time 3-14. railway museum3-13. fi rst steam locomotive to be used in Zimbabwe |45 Th e site’s topography is considerably fl at gently sloping towards the north of the city. Th ere are little signs of any soil and vegetation except at the entrance square. 1 2 4 5 6 7 9 10 12 11 8 3 customs ave 13 13th av H e r b e r t C h i t e p o s t b a s c h s t c o n t e x t 1. Zimbabwe Electricity Sup- ply Association (ZESA) coal station 2. NRZ road-works Department 3. Pedestrian bridge 4. Burnt down offi ces 5. Metcalf square 6. 6 storey NRZ offi ces 7. Train station 8. Downtown shops and infor- mal traders 9. Post offi ce 10. Customs offi ce 11. Workshop 12. Yard for existing train museum 13. Derelict warehouses 3-16. sketch map showing the existing buildings on the site (derived from Local Government Plan No.4, 2011) 0 50 100m 200m 300m |46 physical analysis Th e site’s architectural language is rooted from a mixture of colonial architecture and the robust industrial massed buildings which has directly aff ected the site built up space. Th e density of buildings is very low compared to the amount of open space on the site. Th e building footprint becomes more dense closer to the city centre . Each stand seems to be smaller with maximum built up space. Within 1-2km of the site, no open spaces for social interaction are evident (3-17) though there is plenty of land for it. Th e density depicts the character and function of the space according to the site map shown on the next page. Th e building footprints becomes more dense the closer you move to the city and the further one moves out of the city, the larger the building footprints are and the wider the open spaces between them (a characteristic of industrial spaces). |47 old station rd 13th av b a s c h s t h e r b e r t c h i t e p o s t f o r t s t m a i n s t j a s o n m o y o s t 10th av 12th av 13th av 14th av 3-17. sketch map showing comparing building density to open space (derived rom Local Government Plan No.4, 1988) d en s i t y s c a l e d e n s i t y s im i l a r t o t h e c i t y l a r g e b u i l d i n g f o o t p r i n t o n l a r g e s t a n d s bu i l d i n g a r e l o n g , mo r e i n f r a s t r u c t u r e t h a n b u i l d i n g , t r a i n s t a t i o n . n o r e c r e a t i o n s p a c e s . sma l l b u i l d i n g f o o t p r i n t a n d m ed i um s i z e l a n d . a s s o c i a t e d w i t h h o u s i n g . l o w h i g h 0 50 100m 200m 300m |48 parking spaces Th e parking space in relation to the built space defi nes a lifeless character to the entrance pathway to the station. pedestrian spaces Th ere is little spaces for pedestrian interactions. vehicular movement Vehicular circulation is not as regular as the grid pattern of the city. 3-18. parking spaces, pedestrian spaces and vehicular routes 0 50 100m 200m 300m |49 3-19. fi gure ground open spaces and land use 13th ave fi gure ground Th e character of the fi gure ground by the station has large pockets of empty space as compared to the dense fi gure ground of the city. open spaces Th ere are large amounts of open spaces around the site. land use 0 50 100m 200m 300m Zone 1A &1B: Business core- shops and offices Zone 1C : Business shops and offices Zone 2A : Offices and Public Buildings Zone 2B : Public Buildings Zone 3 : General Business and service Industry Zone 4 : Light/Service industry and Wholesale Zone 5A : Residential Zone 5B : Residential and Ancillary Zone 5C : Residential and Offices ZONES |50 13th av b a s c h s t w i n t e r s u n - j u l y w i e s u n f b r a r n t r - e u y south easterlies s s south ea terlie t a sou h e sterlies Bulawayo sits at an altitude of 1,351m above sea level, considerably lower than the rest of the country. Bulawayo slopes generally towards the north of the site with a height diff erence between the two extreme areas of the city ranging between 90-100 metres with a small height diff erence of fi ve meters on the site. Th e summers are very long with short cold windy winters during July and August. Maximum temperatures are as high as 28 degrees during the month of October though maximum hours of sunshine are towards the winter months of July and August with temperatures as low as 8 degrees hence this is the best time to capture as much sun heat and light in the building to warm and light up the deep areas that do not receive much sunlight. climatic analysis 0 50 100m 200m 300m north and north eastern facades receive the most of the sun’s warmth (World weather and climate conditions 20010-2011)3-20. sketch map showing the climatic analysis on site average monthly sun-hours average precipitation average minimum and maximum temperatures |51 social interactions Th ere is a low level of social interaction observed at the station. Th ese are carved by the type of users that are currently using the train station and how their social patterns are very closely knit to their movement within the city. Th ese users rely on long and short distance emergency taxis and mini-buses, however, the diff erent types of commuters that use public transport in Bulawayo do not end up using the train station because of the limited passenger services the station provides. Th is section looks to understand the causes of the existing social interaction at the trains station, the type of users that use the train station and their movement patterns through the city to the site. the luggage carrier commuters travelling between cities and countries cross border traders type of users ordinary commuter travelling on a daily basis the station personal goods loader formal and informal food service those that travel on a daily basis those that travel long distances those that work at the train station |52 For apprentice engineers working in the railway workshops, the pedestrian bridge to the west of the site is the only way out of the station. Th is makes movement to the main road very diffi cult. Inside the station’s concourse, no one is seen standing by the information desk, nor is there anyone waiting by the small arrivals and departure lounge. No one is interested in each other’s aff airs but to get to where they are going. Th e few people that walk through the main entrance walk straight through to the offi ces upstairs or in their small numbers, to the benches on the platforms. Th e sleeping security guard by the exit door in the concourse appears not to be aware of his surroundings nor the limited activities of the occasional commuters, a security compromise that needs to be looked at in the new solution. A fi ve minute walk away from the station is the railway museum. Neither directions nor advertisement signs are used to direct any potential train enthusiasts to the museum. Th e only form visible link to the museum from the station is an overgrown grass pathway. As the author arrived at the museum, the quality of the trains appeared to be just as run down as the museum shed. Th e old locomotives, the oldest being ninety years old, are stationed outside for display and are not protected from the harsh elements of weather. Behind the stillness of the lonely platforms, a local radio station plays from old speaker phones fi xed to the platform roofs. Not many passengers are visible, only those waiting for the evening train most likely traveling to Victoria falls, Beitbridge or Botswana. Th ere is low social interaction at the station by the lack of activity noted. To analyse the movement patterns of the existing users of the train station from the city, sketch maps were mapped out. |53 3.21. sketch map of transport nodes (derived from Surveyor General Diagram 2011) existing transport nodes |54 movement of train users 3-22. sketch map showing movement of public transport users (derived from Surveyor General Diagram 2011) Local commuters that live close to the city prefer to walk to the city than use public transport. Th is is the reason why there are many local commuters seen walking along the main roads along the north east to the south of the city. Long distance users are usually seen near transport nodes with long distance bus services walking along the main roads and they use bag carriers to carry their luggage. |55 d r s o p o t a m vic fa ll rd eert mulp dr 13th ave esigodini rd r r h a r a e d hillside rd CITY CENTRE p enger s v ce o uveve a d ass er i t l n gan ini em w Main pedestrian routes for local and long distance users pedestrian route to and from rail station normal pedestrian movement within the city pedestrian route for pedestrians Travelling in Bulwayo to and from local transport nodes pedestrians wait along main road for public emergency taxis pedestrian route for pedestrians traveling outside Bulwayo to and from national and international transport nodes 3.23. sketch map showing pedestrian movement within the city (derived from Surveyor General Diagram 2011) pedestrian movement |56 dr erarah d r s o p o t a m gwanda rd luve ve rd vic fa ll rd eert mulp dr esigodini rd hillside rd CITY CENTRE long distance terminus services long distances and is accessible to most parts of the city within 1km radius transport node within close range each node in close proximity of less han 1km radius m 5 k m 1 k 13th ave 1 2 3 54 (average walking speed taken at 5km/h, motor vehicle traveling time is an average 5min drive) train station 3-24. sketch map showing travelling distances (derived from Surveyor General Diagram 2011) travelling distances Th e train station is in close proximity to the high density residential suburb to the west of the city. Commuters living in theses nearby areas are able to walk to the station. To avoid walking, people in other surrounding areas can use the proposed city to station bus shuttle. Th e most ideal place would be at point B, by the City hall within the parking lot.B (average walking speed taken at 5km/h, motor vehicle traveling time is an average 5min drive) train station |57 SOUTH AFRICA BOTSWANA CITY CENTRE d r s o p o t a m luveve rd vic fall rd ee rtmulp dr 13th ave esigodini rd hillside rd ZAMBIA s e passenger ervice to luv ve and emganwini c i r c u l a t i main circulation routes Major roads (all roads are 2 way unless stated otherwise) national routes main city circulation routes international routes main freight services rail route main passenger services rail route 3.25. sketch map showing Bulawayo’s main routes (derived from Surveyor General Diagram 2011) Bulawayo main routes are divided into international, national and city routes. Th ey evenly distribute road traffi c to all parts of the city except for the city centre. Th is was done to avoid heavy vehicles disturbing the main traffi c fl ow within the city and damage to roads. Th e railway station only has one city circulation route that links all types of traffi c to the city using 13th avenue. |58 Th e NRZ staff make the most pedestrian movement especially during lunch time and towards the end of the day. Th ey frequent the entrance way to the station concourse; main access route to do their daily duties. Some will be moving from the six storey building to the personnel offi ces on the fi rst fl oor whilst others move towards the downtown shops for food supplies. Th e movement of commuters (3-7) using the train commences from the pedestrian bridge in the far east of the station where the workshops are located; in the far most southern portion of the station. 3-26. sketch map showing pedestrian movement on site (derived from Surveyor General Diagram 2011) pedestrian movement on site Existing transport nodes Short distance Taxi rank (Old short distance bus terminus) Main Public Transport routes main route used by buses and taxis main route used by long distance buses main route by rail Main Pedestrian routes general pedestrian movement normal pedestrian movement within the city |59 Th e vehicular movement at the station is limited to the entrance and exit points surrounding the parking area. vehicular movement on site 3-27. sketch map showing vehicular movement on site (derived from Surveyor General Diagram 2011) Existing transport nodes Short distance Taxi rank (Old short distance bus terminus) Main Public Transport routes main route used by buses and taxis main route used by long distance buses main route by rail Major roads (all roads are 2 way unless stated otherwise) main circulation routes international routes |60 As explained earlier, the inscriptive qualities of a place explains how people express themselves within a given space. Th e train station, as shown in the images 3-28 to 3.33 are no diff erent to a ghost town or an under-used space. No one uses the facility at the station because few people use the train. Th e commuter dining hall 3-33) is empty, the benches on the platforms are dilapidated (3-31), the parking area is empty of any cars, buses or any vehicular activity (3-28 and 3-32). inscriptive qualities 3-33. an empty commuter dining hall 3-32. the parking lot in front the main entrance to the train station Figure 47. an empty parking lot (source: author, 2011) 3-31. a passenger sleeping on a bench3.29. a dilapidated door 3-30. parcel counter 3-28. the main parking lot |61 Th e architectural elements of this place are falling apart, from the doors (3-29), the furniture to the actual masonry that holds the building together. From understanding the material culture of the station, it is clear that the place is experiencing from any pedestrian activity (3-34). As good as hidden, Bulawayo’s only train station has found itself lost out of the city. Th e station has failed to connect to the city in a coherent way and has failed to make any positive contributions to the surrounding urban context or its users. image component 3-34. bird’s eye view of the loading docks (www.throughtheireye2.co.uk) |62 theory analysis Lost places, as mentioned earlier, are caused by the automobile, land uses and zoning policies, treatment of open space by architects of the Modern Movement, lack of responsibility by the private and public sector over the city and by abandoning industrial, military and transportation sites. Th ese causes have created micro (local) and macro (urban) problems that have aff ected the train station’s architectural, social, economical and physical character. local problems Th e main problem that the author found evident is the site’s lack of connectivity to the city caused by irrelevant land policies that the city is still using. Th e rail industry was zoned as part of the industrial sector because freight services used to be the station’s prime service. For this reason, the designers did not allow for the future expansion of passenger rail service. NRZ has abandoned the station by not meeting local and national demands of freight and passenger services and maintaining existing infrastructure. A fl eet of train yards, unused train wagons and the derelict locomotive parts have been left scattered on parts of loading yards, painting a bad image of the station yard. lack of security has compromised the station’s credibility of providing a safe passenger service for many years. cable theft, vandalism to rail property and theft on the trains have lowered passenger ticket sales for years. To intensify security on the premises, NRZ has improved security standards to combat acts of theft and vandalism. Security offi cers and guard-dogs have been added to safeguard passengers at the train station though they are not often |63 seen on site. Few people travel at night because of no lighting on platforms. cable theft, a common problem in Southern Africa, has limited the service of electric run locomotives in Zimbabwe. “Th ere is a need to provide lighting on the platforms to ease boarding and inside the trains to improve security.” (Mbara 2005:128) Th e bad lighting is attributed to the shortage of power supply in the country and bad architectural design. Th e use of technology is limited to diesel and coal powered locomotives, a dilemma that reduced any plans of expanding electric run locomotives. Passenger services for short distance commuting currently serve commuters living in the high density residential suburbs of Luveve and Emganwini in the north eastern area of Bulawayo. Th is type of suburb is primarily occupied by the low income generating population of Bulawayo. As a result, people have stigmatised the train services to be a service for the poor, because of the limited passenger service segregating the poor from the middle to high income group of Bulawayo. In a similar situation, South Africa’s new rapid railway network, the Gautrain, has a limited passenger service that covers close to 80 km of rail. Th e concern that some commuters have about Gautrain’s limited passenger service is that the fi rst phase of construction connects certain areas that are associated with the wealthy income group living in Gauteng. Additionally, the service is not affordable for the middle to low income generating population. A train ride to the airport is R100, an amount 3-35. the gautrain rail route in gauteng (after www.gautrain.co.za) |64 normally spent in one week using public taxis to and from work. Th e Gautrain is much more accessible to Gauteng’s high income group and the passenger service in Bulawayo does the opposite; the service appears to only serve the low income generating population. Public transportation should serve all income generating groups regardless of their race and place of dwelling by providing an aff ordable, safe and yet effi cient means of travel. Another set of local problems associated with the train stations is vandalism. Th ese problems have painted a perception of low quality commuter service. Some of these locomotives are painted in unattractive graffi ti with most of the internal furniture vandalised beyond repair. Th e architectural integrity of the place is overshadowed by the numerous extensions added to the original Victorian station. Nothing celebrates the colonial identity of the original station building. Circulation within the building can sometimes be confusing to the visitor because of the inadequate and low quality signage used urban problems Th e attractive mobility and communicative qualities of the automobile have overtaken the public qualities of the place caused by a large section of land dedicated to parking. Trancik (1986) also says mobility, motion and the automobile are the prime causes of lost places. As the automobile is very important in Bulawayo, it has become one of the main modes of public transport used and causing other forms of mass transport such as the emergency taxis and mini-buses to be abandoned. Th e resources used to run the locomotives need good diesel and electricity supply. Th e supply of electricity has become unstable in the city because of continuous cable theft and power cuts and the country’s poor economy |65 failing to sustain the nation’s demands for electricity. Diesel, instead, is used for all daily haulages. Th e zoning and land-use policies used in Bulawayo were founded on the idea of segregating white from the black people. Th ese policies placed poor black people to the eastern edges of Bulawayo and closer to the industries where they were only allowed to work (refer to land use diagram 3-7). Th e whites were placed in the opposite area of the city, buff ered off by a strip of park-lands. After independence these areas were then taken over by mostly medium to high income generating black people and they have since been occupying more areas in the northern and southern parts of the city. Th e city maintained the same land policies which have resulted in the railway station being isolated from the city. Th e architects of the original building had not taken into account possible future population growth patterns and changes in the country’s political and economic climate. Th e station’s low pedestrian and vehicular movement is caused by the lack of vehicular and pedestrian routes between the city and the station. Th e station is, consequently, dis-connected from the main activities of the city making it diffi cult for commuters to access the station using public transport. Other problems the author found caused by non-places are associated with the station’s low social interaction. Th e place lacks social facilities and activities such as comfortable resting places. city train station he station and the ccessible for city city train station 3-36. the location of the station is disconnected from the city the dis-co nection between the station and the city |66 After understanding the material culture of the train station, evidence shows that the place is lost and needs to be reclaimed. Th e main problem that needs to be solved is the factor of disconnection between the place and the city. Collectively, the other major causes of the place being lost are from the eff ects of obsolete land-use and zoning policies, the nation’s unstable economy and the automobile. To solve the problems surfaced in this chapter, the author will look at solutions that connect the station to the city by encouraging movement between these places in the next chapter. Th e programming of train stations needs to be constantly revitalised to accommodate the needs of a changing society through the pragmatic knowledge of urban growth patterns. NRZ foresees Bulawayo’s population growing and exerting more pressure on the city’s current public transport system. New productive patterns can only be sustained if NRZ supplies aff ordable, socially inclusive public rail transport to reduce movement time between destinations. Effi ciency is the new drive to urban development. Addressing the problems of rail transport in Bulawayo would facilitate easier access to work, school, health care, welfare and cultural or art events, thus performing a social service for all income groups. Transport systems, therefore, are linked to urban development and thus accepted as a vital economic factor in the distribution of people, goods and services. Improving the mobility of people shapes social structures. c o n c l u s i o n |67 67 CHAPTER 4 atmosphere of a familiar place |68 problems definition thesis overview |69 i n t r o d u c t i o n Bulawayo’s train station has become a lost place and this chapter will look at how the problems associated with the trains station can be solved. In Trancik’s (1986:3) exploration, as a means of fi nding lost places, three urban theories were suggested: the fi gure ground, place and link theories. Th is chapter will look at these theories and their relevance in re-connecting the station to the city. Th e problems associated with the train station being a lost place have aff ected the urban qualities of the place and the problems associated with the place being considered as a non place have reduced the social qualities of the place and further distributed into insolvable and solvable problems. |70 low social interactions security lack of accessibility from the road energy wastage segregation from people social exclusion bad lighting affordability dirt signage underused lost identity site and infrastructure abandoned technology crime URBAN DESIGN LEVEL pedestrian movement vehicular movement public transport routes transport routes re-zoning according to user needs TRAIN STATION extent of conservation of existing structures social activities circulation of arrival and departures space lighting movement type of destinations security architectural identity between old and new facilitieslow vehicular movement low pedestrian movement non proximity to the city poor transport network poor land policies unreliable public transport system the automobile economy PROBLEMS WITH LOST PLACE LOCAL LOCAL URBAN PROBLEMS WITH NON PLACE DESIGN CONSIDERATION no social interactions lack of reason to be in the place site lacking identity of transit no place of rest LEGEND solvable problems insolvable problems design strategy |71 Th e problems that have been layered as insolvable can only be solved at a national level, beyond the scope of this thesis document. Th ere is a great need for capital injection, technology advancements, energy saving facilities and policies that will make the project implementation much faster, however, this thesis looks to creating a new transport hub as the architectural solution and will make the assumption that all insolvable problems will be attended to at a national level. Th e train station is a protected building and its conservation will form a third layer of the author’s design strategy for this thesis as shown on the image below. PROBLEMSOLUTION ARCHITECTURALSOLUTION non place PLACE insolvable problems solvable problems lost place low social qualities national level low urban qualities low social qualities conservation of existing station building low urban qualities non place PLACE insolvable problems solvable problems lost pl ce low social qualities national level low urban qualities low social qualities conservation of existing station building low urban qualities 4-0. the project’s design strategy |72 design solution 4-1. a comparative study of fi gure ground patterns of Le Corbusier’s Ville Radieuse with the city blocks patterns of Paris, New York and Buenos Aires. Th e cities’ free fl owing grid layouts were in- spired by Functionalist theorists. (source: Trancik 1986:104) In order to improve the urban and social qualities of the place, Trancik looks at three urban design principle that can be used to fi nding lost space; link theory, fi gure ground theory and the place theory. 4-2. the three urban theories. (source: Trancik 1986:98) Paris linkage place New York Buenos Aires |73 city train station city main routes possible reconnection points 4-3. a sketch showing how the train station can be re-connected to the city. Th e fi gure ground theory looks at the manipulation and organisation of solid spaces and voids and how the relationship between them needs to be balanced in order to create a form structured on the voids it creates. Th e author will not use the fi gure ground theory to inform her design concept as it expresses no idea of re-connection. link theory Th is theory looks at the organisation of lines that connect parts of an urban space and the design of these spaces from lines relating to buildings and spaces through a spatial datum. A spatial datum is a site line, a directional fl ow of movement, an organisational axis or a building edge. Trancik explores Fumihiko Maki’s investigation of diff erent forms of spatial linkages. Maki understands linkages to be ‘the glue of the city; the act by which we unite all the layers of activity and the resulting physical form in the city (Trancik 1986:106). Th ey are also created between discrete spaces and amongst special activities within the city’s spaces. place theory Th is urban principle looks at understanding the cultural and human characteristics of any space. Th e contextual meaning of place is only defi ned from the cultural or regional content of the place. Th e types of spaces formed under this urban principle are defi ned by the categories based on their physical properties that are unique to the possible connection points city train station city main routes |74 context of the place. It has the tendency of taking on the character of the place or the surroundings; the character can either be a material item or have shape, texture, colour of more tangible cultural associations. Th e link theory will be used to help connect the station to the city through the main transport routes near the site, shown on sketch 4-3. and the place theory will add a new identity to the station by the use of commuter rituals. Th e downtown area that the station is located in separates the station from the city but has the potential qualities of linking the station to the main roads that lead to the city. Th is area will be re-zoned to form part of the station’s urban framework. Two international examples have been selected to demonstrate how under-used urban districts can be re-activated through the use of links in the form of open spaces and movement channels. |75 Identifying the special qualities of this place’ was the main objective of the next example. Th e mixed-use complex did not support the social life and services of Shanghai Yangpu’s university district’s university life so a proposal was made to introduce wide sidewalks, small scale commercial activities and live/work spaces that soon became the social heart of the city. Th e context and human spirit in this place was to heave university life in existing commercial life and merging the two. Link and place principles were applied by joining the diff erent varsity places into a central line of activities. Th is example shows how identity, open spaces, streets, paths and pedestrian friendly environments including mixed used commercial and residential zones can bring together diff erent districts of urban spaces. 4-4. Shanghai’s Yangpu District in China (Kriken 2010,105-73) Th e Knowledge and Innovation City main street connecting the technology hub to the university LIVE/WORK NEIGHBORHOOD RELATED HIGH-TECH DEVELOPMENT THE HUB UNDERGROUND TRANSIT STATION HISTORIC STADIUM UNIVERSITY AVENUE SOCIAL HEART FUDON UNIVERSITY |76 4-6. Th e technology hub’s plaza leading to the social heart of the street (Kriken 2010,105-73) p l a c e s f e e d ing i n t o a c e n t r a l a c t i v e a r t e ry c e n t r a l p l a c e s 4-7. looking onto the restored historic stadiums (Kriken 2010,105-73) 4-5. the idea of the central artery as the main feeder of activities |77 4-8. Kaohsiung Port Station, Taiwan (Kaohsiung City Government’s Urban Development Bureau 2009:30) Th e next example looks at Kaohsiung Port Station, an old railway yard served by the harbour to the south east of the site. Th e station has become a potential commercial hub, with a master plan that incorporates a designated cultural and leisure district, a commercial district and public facilities such as parks, transportation facilities and roads. Some railway facilities, signal buildings, platforms, railroads and other old articulated devices and switches are preserved for future operations. Th e urban planners transformed track yards into park spaces of outdoor sculpture, restaurants and retail rail- cars. Former sugar warehouses were renovated into creative industry lofts and heritage areas. Th e area carefully engages with the city’s road network whilst the rail track inspires linear movement into the area. |78 Other old warehouses were reused into new hotel facilities, medium density commercial and mixed use residential buildings. 4-11. Artistic impressions of the urban renewal scheme (AGER Group’s Winning Kaohsiung Port Station Proposal, 2011) 4-10. urban plan layout of the station (AGER Group’s Winning Kaohsiung Port Station Proposal, 2011) 4-9. bird’s eye view of the port station (AGER Group’s Winning Kaohsiung Port Station Proposal, 2011) |79 Th e link and place theory will be used to re-zone the area around the station to improve the urban and social qualities of lost places. In the previous examples, link and place theory helped re-connect abandoned places. Th ey were expressed through visual links, movement strategies and activated dead spaces with commuter activities. Th e author will use the same strategies to help reconnect the station to the city. Movement will be expressed in - access routes for public and private modes of transport, - convenient movement links for pedestrians from the two streets that border the site, - a clear transport network for emergency taxis, buses, motor vehicles and pedestrians, - clear and porous movement of all transport modes from the city to the site. Visual links will be in the form of: - a new architectural identity that links both the history of the site to the new transport hub, - a simplifi ed zonal strategy for the area around the station, Th e new station will have new commuter activities that have - adequate outdoor resting spaces and places of contemplation, - preserved future usable space and re-use demolished material in pathways, outdoor recreational spaces and within the new train station, - places of commerce and retail opportunities, - places that encourage social interactions and social inclusion such as children play areas and outdoor market spaces, - leisure and heritage sites as part of the open spaces experience. application of design principles |80 4-12. conceptual diagram of the site’s existing problems and links existing buildings to be preserved area where rail-raod texture is preserved area for public facilities area for NRZ offices and road works area preserved for setback |81 4-13. conceptual diagram of the site’s potential link patterns 4-14. conceptual diagram of potential areas of development existing station faces the main road retail area blocks view of train station broken link to the city; potential access route to the station |82 potential areas of linkages potential areas of linkages 4-15. conceptual diagram of the links patterns |83 spaces before the existing train station act as forecourts of activities movement is direct to the rail track creates an area of potential commuter 4-16. further development of link ideas |84 LEGEND existing buildings circulation programme taxi rank fore court activities new station medium density commercial mixed use accommodation NRZ offices parking private vehicle movement pedestrian taxi bus rail park the links produced from this arrangement are not clearly lined. option 1 4-17. proposed site layout option 1 |85 option 2 LEGEND existing buildings circulation programme taxi rank fore court activities new station medium density commercial mixed use accommodation NRZ offices parking private vehicle movement pedestrian taxi bus rail park buses drop off commuters closer to the station entrance taxis do not enter the site but drop passengers of by the main road, however those carrying luggage have to walk a longer distance to station entrance 4-18. proposed site layout option 2 |86 forecourt spaces to h o l d c ommu t e r the bounding streets become the main feeders, connectors a r c a d e s a nd c o l onn ad ed pavements to create connective seams from the main roads vehicular movement is restr icted around the forecourt. there is are separate entrance and exit points. drop off area parking Th e city has interesting linkage patterns along the streets, street intersections and pavements whilst pedestrians activate these links with their commuter activities. Option two was chosen as it shows clear channels of movement from the two bounding streets. Th e fore court will have interesting social activities such as outdoor exhibition spaces, formal and informal food courts, fresh food vendor and market spaces that will function daily. 4-19. proposed pedestrian movement 4-20. proposed motor vehicle movement s |87 buses drop off passengers at the mini taxi rank along the 13th ave and the main entrance by the main road is a mini taxi rank and they have their own entrance and exit points separate to private vehicles 4-21. proposed bus movement 4-22. proposed taxi movement |88 4-23. urban planning layout RAILWAY SERVICES MARKET PLACE MARKET PLACE context plan PRESERVED AREAS AREAS PRESERVED FOR SETBACKS AREAS WHERE RAILROAD TEXTURE IS PRESERVED AREAS WITH COMMUTER ACTIVITIES AREA FOR RAILWAY OFFICES AREA FOR NEW STATION 50 100 ‘buy and go’ commuter activities ‘buy, wait and go’ commuter activities commuter activities for those not using the train commuter activities for train fanatics |894-24. fi nal urban planning layout