Abstract:
Vehicle domination in streets has deteriorated the public realm depriving people their once
democratic, safe public space with a prolific diversity of functions and applications. Spatial
limitations, environmental pollution and safety hazards are on a rise mainly in developing
countries that are blindfolded with economic development as the priority but not the human wellbeing.
Even in Sri Lanka, more commercialized townships such as Matara are undergoing the
complexities of excess vehicular eco-system. Relevantly, this research attempts to assess the
severity of traffic and traffic prioritized street design towards the pedestrian/ public performance
on streets under physical/ sensory, environmental and safety related parameters.
By defining an applicable analytical criterion in the literature review based on prominent scholarly
findings on the subject, the research investigates effects and magnitudes of traffic and related
street design errors against the public performance on the main thoroughfare of Matara
township under three different functional facets. The analysis is primarily fed with researcher’s
observational information which are complimented and validated by third person (users) input
with help of viable analytical tools/ techniques.
Findings of the research ascertain the crucial flaws of city’s existing street design that are rather
biased towards mere vehicular activity instead of the public. Ability of comparative analysis helps
to define variation of magnitude and nature of the impact on each criterion assessed, related to
the three case study scenarios. The study probes a familiar, yet underrated spatial planning
dilemma into sophisticated depths and intends to support associated studies in the future
