Tag: Towns

Concept of New Towns

 World civilization is growing and cities are expanding to their outer city limit which leads to an urban sprawl and the formation of suburbs. Specialized city suburbs have been developed over time which eventually separates the inhabitant’s social connection from the main city center. As a result, the city has exceeded its outer boundaries and leaves limited space for further urban development. When population and housing demands increased, government authorities, sought out for new and other options; the development of new towns. 

New town, a form of urban planning designed to relocate populations away from large cities by grouping homes, hospitals, industry and cultural, recreational, and shopping centres to form entirely new, relatively autonomous communities. The first new towns were proposed in Great Britain in the New Towns Act of 1946; between 1947 and 1950, 12 were designated in England and Wales and 2 in Scotland, each with its own development corporation financed by the government. The new towns were located in relatively undeveloped sites. Each was to have an admixture of population so as to give it a balanced social life. 

A new town is a new settlement built on either rural land transformed to urban land use or on new reclaimed land. The objective of developing new towns is to become a self-sufficient town. New towns seem to be the answer to the urban sprawl and suburban dilemma where there are low economic job opportunities creating a high percentage of commuting. This however becomes a mutual problem for new towns as they evolve making them dependent on neighboring towns and cities for employment and various types of social services. Another issue that new towns have to deal with is the identity crisis which links to its lack of history. This therefore leads people to the misconception of new towns as suburbs.

A more consistent definition of a new town is best described by the International New Town Institute as (INTI) human settlements that were founded at a certain moment in history by an explicit act of will, according to a preceding plan and aiming to survive as a self-sustaining local community and independent local government, able to play a role in the ongoing development of the region in which the new town is located. 

A new town has been interpreted as a relocation of housing for overpopulated cities or a safe suburban living area for the middle class family. A new town is not an extension of an existing town or city. It is a blueprint plan of a new settlement before it was built. New towns were also characterized as a new concept of lifestyle: ‘living in a green and healthy environment’ after much destruction to existing cities and towns during World War II. New Towns became the answer to divert over populated and congested cities to a new location of a new town. The development of new towns has served as relocation for the over spill of existing cities. It should not be forgotten that new towns also exploits rural land that may have served for other land use developments such as for farmland or nature and recreation area.

What are Important Aspects of Preparing Master Plan for a Town

 In the beginning, a ‘Master Plan’ is prepared, which identifies the long-range, comprehensive planning by or for a government agency as a foundation for the overall land development policies within specific corporate limits. The master plan deals with the natural city or a town as a whole. It offers a broad, general picture of the projected spatial pattern of the total metropolis. Three aspects of the master plan may be studied, each of which represents a major historical emphasis on city planning. 

1) Land Use Pattern 

Planning for effective use of land within the town/city limits involves decisions regarding: 

  • The various types of utilization that require distinctive subareas. 
  • The percentage of the total occupied space that should be apportioned to each type and the grade of utilization. 
  • The proper location within the city/town of each type of functional area. 

2) Land Utilization 

The master plan or the general plan has to give scope to various categories of land utilization, both public and private. Three major categories of private land use are common stores, factories and residences each may be subdivided further. Factories may be separated into at least two subtypes, Tight’ and ‘heavy.’ Residences may be divided into three subcategories by value low, medium and high and into two or more subcategories according to the intensiveness of utilization. 

Commercial establishments may be divided into subcategories such as wholesale and retail, with the latter further subdivided. In addition, storage and switching facilities may require separate areas in connection with heavy transportation lines. Public land utilization, such as parks, playgrounds and civic centres, also have to be provided for in the city plan. However, the most extensive form of public land utilization streets spread throughout the city is in no need for a separate demarcation of space. 

3) Spatial Locations for Each Category

In determining the spatial location for each category, various types and grades of subareas available in the city are indicated on the master plan map. The planner then considers the following to determine which land has to be allotted to which category. 

  • The kinds of services to be performed within the city. 
  • The ideal locations for stores, factories and residences. 
  • Significant characteristics of the urban site that suits this ideal pattern. 
  • The existing heritage of the past construction that gives the city its present spatial pattern. 
  • The trends of the spatial change that already have started but have not run their full course. 
  • Anticipated effects of any new inventions. 

With these considerations in mind, the planner undertakes to formulate a general map of the most efficient spatial pattern. This plan is usually effected within a time span of 20 to 50 years. The planner has to recommend to appropriate officials such controls and changes as will further the realization of this pattern. The ideal master plan places every category and subcategory in a subarea of a city that 

  • The total cost of moving men and materials from place is minimized 
  • Safety and beauty are maximized 
  • Constructive social contacts are stimulated 

In formulating these proposals, the planner can utilize a generalized description of the ideal spatial pattern of a city or study the various types of city planning recommended by the experts.He needs to make detailed studies of the unique characteristics of each city and to modify the generalized ideal pattern so as to fit the local conditions and needs. For an already existing city/town, the urban planner ordinarily finds that the basic pattern of heavy transportation already has been established. The major system of streets has been laid out and the locations of the central business district and of major secondary commercial centres have been fixed, and that many areas of light and heavy industries have been established. Even though he must begin with this existing pattern and has numerous decisions to make regarding future changes. 

Industrial Location 

Although the planner has the choice to assign industrial locations to various typical positions, such as near the central business district; along the lines of heavy transportation and at breaks in transportation within the city; and at the periphery or in the nearby hinterland, etc., he has to make an effort to place them in the periphery. The planner should also provide a plan for peripheral and hinterland industrial areas, to prevent the loss of property values for the property owners of these areas.

Sometimes, it may so happen that the new industrial areas may generate many more factories, the plan has to provide for the growth of these interdependent industries, which cluster in adjacent sites, so that they can serve one another more effectively and also obtain cheaper and more efficient heavy transportation services. In addition, the urban planner needs to prepare for the expansion or migration of certain industrial areas within the city and also the migration of some industries to the city. Consequently, the planner has to make a detailed study of the factors affecting a particular city before determining the size and location of its industrial areas. 

Commercial Location 

Commercial areas ideally depend for the location and size both on the functions they are expected to perform and on the size and location of the population they will serve. In general, the major shopping goods and luxury goods centre should be planned for the middle or the centre of the city/town. This area normally is expected to expand slowly in the direction of greater population growth. With increase in the widespread automobile transportation, the larger shopping centres or commercial centres can also be located in the peripheral or outlying locations. The planner, however, has to provide for parking facilities and less traffic so that city dwellers may not face the inconvenience. 

Residential Location 

Within the built-up area of the city, some old residential districts will sometimes require extensive reconditioning or complete remodeling. Sometimes, the existing single family areas will need to give way to more intensive types of residential utilization. Sometimes, it may so happen that new residential areas have to be curved out in the peripheral regions or in the suburban areas. 

The general plan or the projected plan when made initially should place areas of multifamily residences close to busy centres of dominance especially the central business district or close to the streets or transportation lines that give ready access to such centres. Smaller areas of intensive utilization may be planned to take advantage of exceptional amenities. Expansion of residential areas into unoccupied land presumably follows the principles of distribution. Under the influence of individual and rapid speed transportation, residences will probably become more decentralized but larger numbers of peripheral communities will grow. 

City Beautification 

City beautification, which was emphasized to a very great extent in the ancient and medieval ages, has taken a backstage in recent years. Nevertheless, it deserves careful consideration by the urban planner. One major aspect of beautification, which claims the attention of many planners, involves the design and erection of an imposing civic centre. The planned civic centre counteracts the random erection of public buildings in scattered locations among other structures. When visitors visit this city, they will gain a more favourable impression of the metropolis and local residents will develop a greater civic pride if public buildings such as the corporation, public library and museum are grouped together in a beautiful civic centre. 

Other types of civic beautification projects involved in master planning include the selection of large and small parks to preserve exceptional beauty spots and make them available to the public and the designing and planting of parkways and residential streets so as to enhance their beauty. 

Buildings : Old and New 

The city/town consists of buildings that vary in age and condition. Cities require old buildings, else it is impossible that vigorous streets and commercial centres grow in them because if the cities consist of only new buildings, the enterprises that can exist there are automatically limited to those that can support the high costs of new construction. For example, well financed supermarkets, chain restaurants and banks, which are capable of paying high costs, use these buildings. But in a city, there are some small investors and shopkeepers, who cannot pay high costs; to cater to such people, old buildings are a must in a city. It is the same with respect to residential places also some people who can afford new buildings will reside in these buildings, some others prefer to reside in old buildings. 

The only harm of aged buildings is the harm that eventually comes of nothing but old age. In some cities/towns, some of the older buildings, year by year, are reconstructed or renovated. Over the years, therefore, there will be a mixture of buildings of many ages and types. With the passage of time, high building costs or new buildings of one generation become bargains or old buildings of the next generation. The colonies built up all at once usually change little physically over the years. But after many years, almost all the buildings in these colonies become old and dilapidated. 

Slum Clearance 

Many cities contain extensive areas of closely packed deteriorated dwellings, often called slums. To make the city more beautiful, the local authorities have to undertake to raze a few blocks of slum dwellings and to build new residences. At such times, city planning officials may be asked to study the local area and to make recommendations about its spatial layout. If a slum clearance project is to cover only one of several deteriorated sections of a city, the planner may first be asked to make recommendations as to which specific locality should be rebuilt. In carrying out this preliminary task, he starts with some estimate of land space that will be needed and proceeds to select one or more areas of that size. In deciding which area to recommend for reconstruction, he collects the data covering such points as follows. 

  • The number of structures unfit for human use. 
  • The number of dwelling units lacking adequate lighting. 
  • Delinquency rates. 
  • Income to the city from taxes as compared with the costs of expenditure on the police and health services. 

The planner should also take into account the location of various deteriorated areas as related to the anticipated changes in the total spatial pattern of the city. He then recommends for rebuilding only such areas as will be needed for residential utilization throughout the normal life of the proposed new dwellings. The planner then presents all these data to the officials.Based on all these data, the officials then select a slum area for clearance. The planner then has to prepare a map showing the recommended pattern of land utilization. He has to estimate the amount of space needed by store, shops, schools and playgrounds. He should also decide on the preferred locations for each type of utilization. 

He has to then recommend on how much of land has be utilized for residential purposes and also indicate the size and location of individual structures on a map. Usually on an in lying slum clearance area, the structures rebuilt are aimed at multifamily, low cost residences, generally fewer in number and higher in grade than those replaced. If a considerable slum area is cleared at one time, the planner can ignore the previous pattern of streets and can shape the area almost as if he were beginning with vacant land. Ideally, he places heavy traffic streets only among the edges of a neighbourhood and uses narrow, curved secondary streets to divide the neighbourhood into large residential super blocks, and provide necessary access to and from homes. These features of local street plans for slum clearance areas are much like those characteristics of the peripheral preplanned communities. 

Streets and Transportation Facilities 

The planning of streets and transportation facilities relates so intimately to the spatial structure of the city that the two cannot be separated. The major function of urban transportation is that of connecting one area with another so that men and materials can move with greater safety and less cost. Sometimes, some specific projects may create problems for transportation. Thus, a multiplicity of transportation and communication facilities confronts the city planner. Some facilities link the city with the hinterland and some others link with other cities, towns and villages. 

City planning has to deal with the routes of heavy transportation and location of terminal facilities and other problems that involve street use. It should also take into consideration the congestion and danger created by the large volume and potentially high speed of urban street traffic. Three aspects have to be considered while planning the streets, traffic counts and calculation of street requirements, elimination of bottlenecks and dangerous intersections, and special high-speed expressways and bypass routes. 

Traffic Counts and Major Street Pattern 

Sound planning of the major street system requires for the quantitative determination of needs. To determine these needs, the traffic engineers count the number of vehicles using each major street at different hours of the day and on various days of the week. Such traffic counts measure the total volume of traffic and the size and hours of peak loads. Sometimes, the engineers have to survey the origin and destination of the traffic to determine how much traffic can conveniently be diverted from the more congested streets to alternate routes. Using such data, engineers calculate the number and width of streets needed and make recommendations for new construction or for changes in the existing streets. 

Elimination of Bottlenecks and Dangerous Intersections 

One best method of lessening the traffic congestion on certain streets is the elimination of bottlenecks. If, throughout most of its length, a busy road is broad enough to handle the ordinary volume of traffic, then there will not be any problem of congestion. But at any point on the road, there is a narrow street or a bridge, it interferes in the ordinary movement of the traffic. The planner usually recommends the widening of such narrow places. 

Sometimes, if the bottleneck results from on street parking, the planner has to recommend the elimination of the practice or he may introduce a system of ‘one-way’ traffic streets. If peak loads result in congestion during morning and evening hours, and if the highway has four or more traffic lanes, the planner may recommend the use of movable directional signs so placed as to permit a greater number of lanes to be used in the direction of heavier traffic. 

Another major problem is traffic intersection or traffic caused due to intersecting streets. Collision and injuries are common at such places, which can be greatly reduced by overpasses and underpasses. These can eliminate cross traffic. At times, the planners can work out a system that provides for entrances and exits to facilitate the movement between cross streets or intersecting streets. 

The planners can provide for two special categories of highways to manage the traffic – high speed expressways and bypass routes. The former should ordinarily extend from the city centre outward through less populous areas into the hinterland. Such expressways can be entered only at designated points, with entrance and exit lanes especially designed to lessen the danger and to minimize interference with speeding traffic. The second highway should provide for slow traffic. These routes should lead through traffic around rather than through areas of congestion. Thus, planners can recommend a number of methods to overcome bottlenecks including the barriers caused due to pedestrian traffic.

Objectives of Town Development Plan

 

  • It arranges the pattern of a town in such a way so as to satisfy the present requirements without introduction of future improvements by the coming generations 
  • Restricting haphazard and unplanned growth
  • It helps to bring harmony and understanding between the different groups of the people 
  • It removes the defects of uncoordinated physical growth 
  • It serves as a guide to the planning body for making any recommendations for public improvement
  • It stimulates wider interest in community problems 
  • To coordinate the physical, economic, social and political forces that govern the structure of the community 
  • To formulate long term and short term action programs with a view to injecting long term considerations into short term actions 
  • It aims at intelligent and economic spending of the public funds for achieving welfare of the inhabitants in respect of amenity, convenience and health 
  • To organize and coordinate the complex relationships between urban land uses

Necessity of Development Plan 

  • To control the development of various industries in a systematic way 
  • To discourage the an used and unscientific way growth 
  • It serves an overall picture and program for the future development 
  • To offset the evils which have come up due to overcrowding of population such as acute shortage of houses, traffic congestion, inadequate open spaces and insufficiency in public amenities etc. 
  • To limit to a certain extent the unprecedented flow of rural population to the urban area

Process of Planning and Designing a New Town

 Planning is the process of thinking about and organizing the activities required to achieve a desired goal. The process of planning includes the determination of objectives and outlining the future actions that are needed to achieve these objectives. Various steps that are followed in the process of planning are:

1) Identifying the problem 

It involves the identification of the aim for the fulfillment of which the plan is being formulated. If a new plan is require or the modification of an existing plan could help in achieving these aims. 

2) Gathering information about the activities involved 

An effective plan needs complete knowledge of the activities involved and their effect on other external and internal activities. 

3) Analysis of information 

This information is then analyzed minutely and the information related with similar subjects is classified so that similar type of data can be kept together. 

4) Determining alternate plans 

There are alternate plans available for the achievement of the objectives and ingenuity and creativeness are required as some plans are also developed at this stage. 

5) Selecting the plan 

At this stage the plan which is acceptable to the operating personnel is proposed. The adaptability and the cost of the plan are also taken into consideration. 

6) Detailed sequence and timing 

Detailed like who will perform which activity under the plan and the time within which the plan should be carried out is determining in this step. 

7) Progress check of the plan 

The provisions are made for the follow up of the plan as the success of any plan can be measured by the results only. 

8) Implementation 

Implementation is the carrying out, execution, or practice of a plan, a method or any design, idea, model, specification, standard or policy for doing something. As such, implementation is the action that must follow any preliminary thinking in order for something to actually happen. 

9) Monitor and Control 

Managers must continually monitor the actual performance of their work units against the unit’s goals and plans. Manager’s also need to develop control systems to measure that performance and allow them to take corrective action when the plans are implemented improperly or when the situation changes.

Regional Rapid Transit System corridors to connect various important towns of NCR

 National Capital Region Planning Board (NCRPB) prepared a ‘Functional Plan on Transport for National Capital Region(NCR)-2032’ which recommended eight Regional Rapid Transit System (RRTS) corridors to connect various important towns of NCR with high speed rail based commuter transit system viz. (i) Delhi-Gurgaon-Rewari-Alwar (ii) Delhi-Ghaziabad-Meerut (iii) Delhi-Sonipat-Panipat (iv) Delhi-Faridabad-Ballabhgarh-Palwal (v) Delhi-Bahadurgarh-Rohtak (vi) Delhi-Shahdara-Baraut (vii) Ghaziabad-Khurja and (viii) Ghaziabad-Hapur. Out of these, the Task Force constituted by the then Planning Commission prioritized three corridors namely, (i) Delhi-Ghaziabad-Meerut (ii) Delhi-Gurugram-Rewari-Alwar and (iii) Delhi-Panipat. From the above, Delhi-Ghaziabad-Meerut RRTS corridor has been approved and the construction work is underway.

The Detailed Project Report (DPR) after the Feasibility Study has been received from National Capital Region Transport Corporation (NCRTC) for Delhi-Gurugram-SNB Urban Complex RRTS Corridor in December, 2018 and for SNB Urban Complex to Sotanala RRTS Corridor in June, 2020; which are part of Delhi-Gurugram-Rewari-Alwar RRTS Project.The DPR of Delhi-Panipat corridor has been received from NCRTC in June 2020. Approval of Government of National Capital Territory of Delhi (GNCTD) with financial commitment on DPRs of Delhi-Gurugram-SNB RRTS corridor and Delhi-Panipat RRTS corridor has not been received.

The RRTS projects are cost intensive projects which require extensive inter-ministerial consultations and their approval depends on feasibility of projects and availability of resources. The allocation/release of funds and construction activity of project is undertaken once the project is approved.

Main Functions of a New Town

 Towns and villages differ from each other where their functions are concerned. Villages are mainly associated with production related to agricultural activities. The surplus is used by the villages in exchange for other commodities, which they themselves do not produce, from other villages or towns. The village, accessible to all others, generally becomes the focal point for exchange of commodities. This village generally develops into a town. Once a town comes up, it acquires one or more of the functions depending on a number of factors. 

1) Processing 

Processing is one of the most basic functions of a town and involves processing of agricultural products, for instance, wheat into wheat flour and oil seeds into oil. The most easily accessible village generally becomes the processing centre. This may have been the reason for the emergence of the earliest towns. 

2) Trade 

After processing, the next level of towns are associated with trade. The towns act as the centres for exchange of processed items or manufactured goods between two or more places. These markets may operate on a daily or weekly basis. Weekly markets are a common feature throughout India. These centres may also specialize in one or more items such as fruits and vegetables, cattle and food grains. 

3) Wholesale Trade in Agricultural Products 

Towns engaging in wholesale trade in agricultural products for the next high level in functional pattern of towns. Transport facility is a crucial factor in such towns. These towns generally fulfill processing functions also. Later, they may develop manufacturing and other services also. They are generally small in size and dispersed, often specializing in one commodity or the other. For instance, Hapur is a wholesale centre for food-grains, Ahmedabad and Tiruppur for cotton, Sangli and Erode for turmeric, Bangalore for silk and Guntur for tobacco. 

4) Services 

In towns, services like education, health, administration and communication, not adequately available in villages, are well developed. Of all these functions, administration is the most important one. A town may be the headquarters of a panchayat union, a state cooperative or a district. Administrative towns also have law courts, police stations, government departments associated with developmental works, etc. Chandigarh is a good example of an administrative town. 

5) Manufacturing and Mining 

Such activities give rise to large towns because manufacturing and mining activities generate large scale employment and give rise to other useful economic activities like trade, services, transport, ancillary industry etc. These activities attract large scale migrations from adjoining regions. Jamshedpur came up around the Tata Iron and Steel Works while Raniganj and Kolar are examples of towns which have come up around mining activities. 

6) Transport 

Transport is a basic necessity for all types of economic activities and for the evolution and further expansion of a town. Many of the towns, therefore, have come up around railway stations or port towns. Railway stations act as the centres for change from road to rail traffic and vice versa and for purposes of trans-shipment, collection, sorting and despatch. Jolarpettai in south India is a good example of a town which has come up at a railway junction. Similarly, the ports act as the centres for change from road or rail to sea traffic. Ports may also develop manufacturing and administrative functions. Kolkata, Mumbai, Chennai, Kandla, Paradip etc., are examples of towns which have come up around ports. 

7) Pilgrimage/Tourism 

Pilgrimage is an important activity associated with travelling and lodging. Thus, at such places transport and lodging facilities also come up. The towns adapt themselves to support a large floating population. Tirupati, Hardiwar, Varanasi, Rameshwaram are some examples of pilgrimage centres while Shimla, Darjeeling, Udagamandalam (Ooty) are some examples of tourist centres.

8) Residential 

Towns with residential functions often come up around big cities where land prices are lower, basic services are cheaper and fast transport links with the main city are available. Sonepat, Faridabad and Gaziabad are examples of such towns around Delhi. These towns have also developed manufacturing functions in recent times. Generally, a town has more than one function, but one or two of these dominate. The functions of a town depend on its location, its infrastructural facilities, and historical and economic factors. The dominant function may be identified on the basis of number of persons involved in that particular activity.