I had a chance to meet Tom Gihring of International Planning Consulting in Portland a few months ago. He had visited China in October 2011, and, like me after my visit to Shanghai, came away with very much the same impressions about China’s embrace of motordom and its impact on the planning of its new towns and developments. And he likewise photographed the urban landscape to make the point – along with some pointed comments.
Here, in 15 images (continued below the fold), is his analysis of what has happened to the public realm in contemporarily planned Guangzhou (Vancouver’s sister city in China):
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It’s evident what takes precedent in this planned new town centre.
Where is a pedestrian crossing?
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There must be a crossing somewhere…
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Try and cross this street – but not here
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The bigger the vehicle, the better the chance – maybe
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In Guangzhou’s new town centre, one brave pedestrian jumps the barrier and attempts a crossing.
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Consider driving a car; you can park just about anywhere.
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Sidewalk and landscape amenities, but where are the people?
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The new town centre: no streetscapes here.
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In the concrete jungle, make sure pedestrians can’t enter the street.
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Elevated roadways increase traffic volumes, but at what level of inconvenience for people?
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Right… about a half km. down the street.
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Poster in the Metro station says: “I love Guangzhou… [but I need to be patient]”
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Beijing and Hong Kong to follow.
blehhh… why is China trying to copy America’s failed transportation infrastructure.
China’s unfortunately doing more than copying North America’s mistakes. Its governments – all levels – are using their powers of eminent domain to do things we mostly haven’t been able to do in North America, like building out Vancouver’s proposed freeways from the 1960s.