Directions in Space Syntax. Space Syntax modelling of pedestrian flows for sustainable urban development

Other conference contribution, 2022

Keynote speech.
Modelling pedestrian flows has been one of the main directions of Space Syntax since its introduction, but what we see in the last years is that it has also become a central interdisciplinary objective within the Sustainable Development research agenda. The agenda calls for promotion of sustainable mobility (i.e. walking, cycling, public transport) and a clear shift from car-oriented development. There is an acknowledged need in the broader fields of urban development to model pedestrian flows: to explain and assess the functioning of existing built environments, to predict future situations and assist scenario analysis when planning new areas and infrastructural changes and support decision-making.

The keynote argues that Space Syntax can claim expertise for this emerging interdisciplinary field of study, having built a relevant and comprehensive theoretical and methodological framework and having provided sufficient and solid empirical evidence that it is an appropriate methodology to model pedestrian flows. What is more, it is perfectly aligned with the main tenets of Sustainable Development. The keynote continues to lay out the opportunities created for Space Syntax research by the Sustainable Development research agenda, but also the needs for further development. Using recent and current projects from the Spatial Morphology Group (SMoG) at Chalmers University of Technology, three research priorities are identified and exemplified further.