Redefining the transit core around the transit or neighbourhood center in Malaysia

Abstract

Generally high humidity, high temperature, regular heavy rains, abundant sunshine and thus solar radiation are barrier to walkable neighbourhood in Malaysia, therefore making walkability very difficult at several occasions. Numerous latest literature reviews discussed Walkability in detail, yet have not address the issue of climatic factors as a barrier to walkability. The researchers only mention that climate and providing shade trees may also play vital role in a person's willingness to be active yet they did not elaborate more. Nearly all of the studies and influential policy on neighbourhood walkability, and pertinent concepts like transit-oriented development, is produced in temperate zones in urban districts of western world. The objectives of this paper is to assess how much tropical climate conditions effect the distance a person is willing to walk and to develop policy and to identify design solutions to mitigate these challenges to the possible extend. To achieve the objective of this study first Putrajaya was selected as the study area. For this study meteorological department data was obtained for humidity, air temperature and wind speed at three different occasion of the day that are 8 a.m., 1 p.m., and 5 p.m. This paper proposes new walking guidelines for Malaysia which is the three minute walk, this comfort shed of 240 meters radius from the neighbourhood center or around the transit, is a distance at which the approximately all person will maintain thermal comfort, even if the humidity is high. The maximum walk time was 3 and a half minute, and that is because the entire walk was made under the dense shade produced by trees. Therefore this three minutes walk to some extent provide more conservative estimate of a walking distance that will not cause excessive sweating. Hence the transit core must be redefined as a 240 meter area around the transit or neighbourhood center.