Enhancing Thermal Comfort for the Revitalization of Pedestrian-Friendly Shopping Arcades in Dubai, UAE

Abstract

The need for globalization in the current world has made it impossible for a slow and steady growth in the world’s population. This rapid growth directly influences the economic, environmental and social aspects within a society. Walkability is the foundation of a sustainable city and can be further improvised with the provision of spaces that promotes walkability among the citizens whilst providing higher comfort level and lower energy consumption. The study centers on City Walk, a pedestrian-friendly shopping arcade situated in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, where efforts are made to enhance outdoor environmental conditions by simulating strategies to assess their influence on outdoor thermal comfort. The primary aim of this research is to explore the factors contributing to thermal comfort within a shopping complex and how they encourage pedestrian access to specific sites. The study extensively reviews literature on how the urban setting of the built environment influences walkability. Using ENVI-met software, simulations are conducted in three stages: urban materials, building facade materials, and vegetation and landscaping, encompassing thirteen different combinations to examine four key aspects: temperature, humidity, wind speed, and PMV value, which significantly affect outdoor thermal comfort. The most favorable cases are selected from each phase, and the final reduction in temperature and PMV values of the optimized case indicates a substantial decrease of 3.76 degrees Celsius in air temperature post-implementation of passive design strategies. The research highlights the considerable impact of green elements and water features on outdoor air temperature and PMV values compared to other passive strategies. The result from simulation studies indicate the potential to increase the distances pedestrians are willing to walk outdoors by enhancing their thermal sensation and comfort.

Guidelines and policies of Built Environment can help shape cities into a walkable and active zone especially in a community where health issues are growing at a rapid rate. This dissertation aims in imparting knowledge on how the built environment can directly affect human activity. It can furthermore help policy makers and urban designers to understand the importance of public spaces incorporated with urban setting and leaves behind an essence that healthy community is the key to a sustainable community.

Keywords: walkability, thermal comfort, built environment, urban heat island