An Examination of the Livability in Planned and Unplanned Residential Neighborhoods: (A Case Study of Lahore)

Abstract

Urban sustainability remains the key issue since the 1990s, it mainly consists of livability improvement along with environmental conservation. Many developed countries increase the urban density to improve livability and environment conservation. But at the same time, many developing countries densify their cities without any planning which badly affect the cities livability. The high population density in main cities of developing countries amplified the demand for basic facilities and development of planned projects include housing. In developing countries, the delivery housing units in built-up zones become the serious issue for development authorities in developing countries like Pakistan. Time and again planning authorities in Pakistan had made efforts to overcome housing problems. Regardless of such efforts, housing that fulfil the necessities and desires of poor urban and low income residents, particularly in unplanned neighborhood residents in Lahore city has not been achieved. The development of residential neighborhoods with insufficient housing space and services within the municipalities resulting in high demand generated due to migration and population growth. Due to uneven Supply of basic amenities and facilities in different areas affect the livability of neighborhoods Lahore is the second major city of Pakistan. It is the capital of Punjab with most population. The population of Lahore is 6.31 million according to 1998 census with total area of 1,772 square kilometers. Lahore master plan show the number of houses required are 154,000 housing units. Which indicates the more residential neighborhood will be developed in Lahore to overcome this backlog. The inner city of Lahore is mostly unplanned and walled city, mostly occupied by local people who mostly not willing to shift to outer areas of the city. Due to limited space available for growth within the inner city demanded shifting to the peripheral neighborhoods. Accordingly, variances in the housing quality and service availability for different areas affect the satisfaction xiii level of residents. The aim of this research is to examine the livability in planned and unplanned areas. To achieve this goal, this study addresses the following sections; physical characteristics of case study areas i.e. population density, average house hold size, the number of stories, the condition of houses and neighborhood street width, accessibility to the different community facility. Three neighborhoods from the planned and three from unplanned areas were selected for case studies. The findings of this study show that the planned neighborhoods are more livable than unplanned neighborhoods because the dwelling space, safety and community facilities standards in planned neighborhoods were satisfactory. Most of the neighborhoods near to the inner city of Lahore are unplanned because their haphazard and dense growth which affect their livability. This is due to non-implementation of planning standards and availability of only one tire development authority which unable to control the illegal and unapproved extensions in unplanned neighborhoods. On the other hand, the factors like accessibility, public transport and social interaction lack and were not up to mark in planned neighborhoods. This is because of inadequate and low quality public transport leads to usage of private vehicles to access the community facilities which also affect the social interaction. However, in unplanned neighborhoods, the greater use of street corners may increase the social interaction of neighbors. By comparing the planned and unplanned neighborhoods, this study recommends that controlling authorities should ensure the proper implementation of planning standards by controlling the illegal extensions, by developing open spaces and community facilities within walking distance, provision of adequate and quality transport, and improving the public participation in planning process as the public participations help the authorities to create the satisfy livable environment to residential house necessities.