Published: 2020-12-31

The development of transit and communication routes in a city versus the problem of the degradation of public space

dr Grzegorz Błahut
Journal of Urban Ethnology
Section: Articles
DOI https://doi.org/10.23858/JUE18.2020.002

Abstract

The article describes the changes in the urban public space which are the result of the expansion of roads. The analyzed case of the city of Bielsko-Biała shows this process on the example of three urban areas. The first of them is Śródmieście, where the 3 Maja and Zamkowa streets were widened in the 1970s. The second is Lipnik, a village established in the 13th century, where the construction of the ring road in 2008–2011 caused deep spatial and landscape transformations. The third example covers two districts: Aleksandrowice and Wapienica, and shows the same process over time, since the construction is planned to end in 2020. Thus, not only three areas of the city undergoing the same process in different periods of time, but also phases of the public space degradation are submitted for analysis. In view of modern trends observed in developed countries, which strive to limit the number of cars in cities as well as reduce environmental challenges, the author concludes that this type of modernizing activity is a sign that local community’s interests are being ignored, and that the claim that in this way the city gets developed is dubious.

Keywords:

public space, street, mobility, modernization
JUE 18/2020

Citation rules

Błahut, G. (2020). The development of transit and communication routes in a city versus the problem of the degradation of public space. Journal of Urban Ethnology, 18, 31–46. https://doi.org/10.23858/JUE18.2020.002

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