Here's why urban design can make people less likely to use public spaces

Jul 8, 2022

Urban design can result in people feeling less able or willing to use public spaces. Image: Unsplash/Pascal Bernardon

Jose Antonio Lara-Hernandez

Senior Researcher in Architecture, University of Portsmouth

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The design of public spaces in cities has lasting effects on how we use or inhabit them. Image: Shutterstock

Alameda Central Park, Mexico City Urban public space

Research shows that transforming public spaces markedly affects the diversity of what people do in them, and whether they use them. Image: Diego Grandi/Alamy Stock Photo

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The idea that public space is a public good that belongs to everybody has been increasingly challenged in recent years. Image: UrbanImages / Alamy Stock Photo

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