Case Study Template

Case Study

PLACE LOGIC (ADAM Architecture) + University of Strathclyde

Development of an urban design tool that measures walkability.

Radar chart showing average walking time to everyday amenities in Stamford (grey line) and the immediate neighbourhoods of the two sites (dashed red and blue lines).

PLACE LOGIC (ADAM Architecture)

PLACE LOGIC, a sister company of ADAM Architecture, helps to create better places by combining expertise in urban design and spatial planning with data-driven insights. PLACE LOGIC provide tailored consultancy and analysis for projects of any scale, using advanced spatial modelling to improve the social, economic, and environmental impacts of development. Their appraisals help urban designers, local authorities, consultants and developers create thriving communities.

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What was the need?

The Challenge

Most existing walkability indices still largely rely on the catchment area concept—defined as the area encompassing all destinations within a given distance from a specific origin. The 15-minute city and the 20-minute neighbourhood are two well-known models based on the catchment area concept. While both consider pedestrian accessibility to a similar mix of commercial and service amenities, the former involves a one-way 15-minute trip, whereas the latter is a 20-minute round trip (10 minutes each way). Although these concepts are essential for assessing access to everyday amenities and services at the local level, they fail to capture the physical characteristics of the built form (e.g., the morphological structure of places) and local conditions (e.g., environmental factors like levels of greenery and thermal comfort), which can strongly influence willingness to walk in specific areas. Additionally, human psychological preferences for these features are often overlooked. The challenge is to devise a method to assess attractiveness of street for pedestrians which considers quality of place in addition to accessibility to amenities.

What did we do?

The Solution

Integrating information on the morphological structure of places and environmental conditions with a measure of pedestrian accessibility to everyday amenities is essential for creating a holistic walkability index that reflects the multifaceted nature of the built environment. Open data and advanced digital tools for calculating morphological features can support this goal. Specifically, the morphological structure of places can be described using a set of metrics (morphometrics) that capture the shapes, dimensions, and relationships of key components such as buildings, plots, blocks, and streets. Environmental conditions, including levels of greenery and thermal comfort, can similarly be quantified using openly accessible Digital Surface Models (DSMs) and satellite imagery (e.g., Sentinel-2 data). Combining these metrics into a single index requires a weighting system to account for their relative importance. To achieve this, a psychological survey is conducted to understand people’s responses to diverse urban environments. The survey outputs are then modelled against the metrics in the index to determine their relative weights, which are combined to produce the final index.

What changed?

The Impacts and Benefits

Impacts for the Company

By enabling PLACE LOGIC to assess walkability, this KTP will enable the company to deliver a more holistic service, bringing new insights to existing clients and attracting new ones. Additionally, the project will give PLACE LOGIC exposure to the estate agency sector to whom it can sell data on walkability which can be used in the marketing of sale and rental properties. This will open a new revenue stream for the company and enhance the commercial impact of the KTP. The KTP further strengthens the relationship between PLACE LOGIC and the Urban Design Studies Unit (UDSU), providing opportunities to exploit research in other areas of urbanism.

Impacts for the Academic Team

The Urban Design Studies Unit at the University of Strathclyde is a leading voice and promoter of evidence-based research in urban matters, with a special expertise in the measurement and characterisation of urban form, and resilient urban design. The KTP, integrating this expertise with experiential data, provides unexplored avenues of research which have to date only been applied to very limited contexts, with limited impact on policy and practice. This will allow UoS to become a pioneer in providing much needed tangible evidence on the complex value of urban design for development. The KTP moreover affords a robust demonstration of what precise morphological understanding of urban forms could be used for, in terms of its correlation with other socio, economic and environmental performance knowledge. The protocol produced during the KTP shows the potential of UoS’ expertise and will set it firmly at the forefront of future urban research opening new research and policy applications.

Impacts for the Knowledge Transfer Associate

The KTP Associate has gained a range of professional and academic advantages through this project. He has developed his commercial and organisational awareness whilst working within the organisation. Exposure to client meetings had enhanced his professional communication skills and industry knowledge, whilst interaction with the wider academic community provided opportunities for collaboration and networking. The Associate has deepened his understanding of project management, walkability indices and novel methodologies used for psychological surveys in the built environment. He has enhanced his technical skills, acquiring advanced coding expertise for geospatial and walkability analysis, which was critical for the success of the project. Additionally, he has enjoyed had opportunities to contribute to scientific publications, bolstering his academic profile and credibility. Through these activities, the Associate has not only gained practical experience but also built a solid foundation for future career advancement in both academia and industry.

The People

Meet the Team

Dr Alessandro Venerandi

KTP Associate

Professor Sergio Porta

Knowledge Base Supervisor

Hal Mellen

Company Supervisor