UNI LAB Award 2022: Gursharan Randhawa

Strategies to

urban

ENTRY ENVIMET UNILAB AWARDS 2022 BY GURSHARAN RANDHAWA

With the rapid rate of urbanization, outdoor thermal comfort is a growing concern in dense city centres where the outdoor plazas and open spaces such as walkways, corridors and roofs, often used as a bridge or transition between two spaces, is often left neglected. These open spaces hold interactions between public and private, people and environment, inside and outside and often connect people and places but is in a sad state of environmental crisis. Air pollution has become a cause of worry in developing nations which has a direct impact on urban human health. In order to improve the understanding of microclimate and the impact of built environment on these open spaces, a detailed and accurate environmental study is needed for understanding urban thermal comfort. The statistics presented in the study are based for a typical urban setting in one of the 17 District centres in New Delhi utilizing a variety of computational tools (ENVI met, Rhino, Grasshopper). Typical summer conditions are considered as the base for worst case scenarios to investigate the potential impact of all the factors on outdoor thermal comfort. The strong impact of urban vegetation, pavement albedos and façade greening are highlighted. The findings of the base case will be helpful for urban spaces with similar morphological characteristics. The study concludes with a catalogue of possible interventions to mitigate urban thermal comfort in these transitional spaces of trade centres and ultimately achieve an environmentally conscious solution.

The physiological experience of human thermal comfort is linked to health, happiness and a sense of belongingness which has now been possible to map using advanced microclimatic mapping tools. The study outlines a method for tracking people’s thermal comfort in urban environments and identify areas of thermal stress that affect people’s use and enjoyment of outdoor spaces.

This is structured around the study of climatic factors such as sun, wind and surface temperatures and their impact on human comfort. The urban geometry and physical properties are computed through ENVI met modelling simulated for the needed hours according to city’s hourly weather data.

study

Air quality in India has worsened dramatically over the last two decades as a result of population expansion, increase in vehicular traffic, imminent use of fossil fuels, abysmal land use patterns, industrialization, inadequate public transport facility and ineffectual environmental policies by the governments. The recurring smog in the winter months is an annual source of concern with PM2.5 levelsexceeding the WHO Ambient Air Quality guidelines by 12 times and National Air Quality standards by4 times.

WHO Ambient Air quality standard: 10g/m3

National Air quality standard: 40g/m3

A constant surge is also observed in the PM2.5 levels in winter months. This is due to the stubble burning practices across the agricultural states especially in Punjab and Haryana on the North and Northwest of the city which coincides with the climatic winds trapping the pollutants in place.

Figure 2 (left to right): Haze observed over the region in Winter of 2019 (Source: NASA); Sources of air pollution mapped across climatic conditions on AQI

Figure 3: Annual mean PM2.5 levels over years (left); Annual PM2.5 levels in 2019 (right)(Source: WRI GeoAnalytics 2021)

Specific to the city, transport, Dust and power plants are the primary contributors for over 50% of PM2.5 emissions. The concentrations of pollution are noticeable in the core of the city compared to its urban periphery due to extensive infrastructure projects and traffic congestions in the city. It is observed that over the years noticeable drops in PM2.5 levels are observed as a result of policy initiatives and clear air programs taken up by the government. Another initiative taken up is the closing down of one of the many Thermal Power plants which are a main source of pollution in and around the national capital.

Strategic interventions are deemed necessary to protect these spaces outdoors and indoors from the hazardous repercussions of the pollutants. At an urban level, it is necessary to have environment conscious interventions such as urban greens and façade control to restrict the sources of these pollutants and make the open spaces more breathable and livable.

Figure 4: PM2.5 concentration against sources of pollution (Source: WRI GeoAnalytics 2021)

Figure 5: Daily PM2.5 concentration (Source: WRI GeoAnalytics 2021)

CENTRES

HISTORY AND EVOLUTION

Post-Independence, India, particularly the capital city New Delhi witnessed rapid urbanization with the metropolitan cities becoming the centers for jobs. The first Master Plan drafted for a period be tween 1962 1982 implicitly restructured Delhi’s status from bi nodal city, connecting the two major existing trade zones of Connaught Place and Chandni chowk to a multi nodal city with the introduction of multiple district trade centers. The 15 planned district centers were proposed to de congest the existing two trade zones and actively distribute commerce throughout the city to cater to the influx of migrants into the city.

The creation of multiple Central district centers to serve as the focal points in the city was planned out providing major retail and commercial services. These trade centers maintain the status of also serving as community centers for the neighborhoods around.

Since the first draft masterplan for new Delhi, 15 sites are proposed for these trade centers out of which 7 have been complete and fully functional. These include Nehru Place, Saket and Green Park (South Delhi), Laxmi Nagar, Nirman Vihar and Patparganj (East Delhi), Jhandewalan, Rajendra Place, Karol Bagh and Rajinder Nagar (Central Delhi), Netaji Subhash Place, Janakpuri and Shivaji Place (West Delhi). For a detailed site study and better understanding of the climate the site of Nehru place is selected.

SITE ACCESSIBILITY

Nehru Place is located in South east district of Kalkaji in New Delhi. It is well connected by the two existing metro stations, Nehru Place and Nehru Enclave located on the north and south of the site, connecting the rest of Delhi, the site is accessible for vehicular traffic mostly from South and West by Outer Ring Road (45m wide) and Lala Lajpat Rai Road (30 m). In the site premises autos and rickshaws connect Nehru place to nearby residential areas of Greater Kailash, CR Park and Kalkaji. Inter site movements are restricted for loading and unloading docks and the alleyways often serve as an extension of parking spaces due to high influx of vehicles. The bus routes are limited to the periphery of the site and the entire site itself is a puzzle of 4 wheelers and 2 wheelers with no defined walkways and the usual site of people tending to find their way in this maze. The site itself is pedestrian only with surface parking on the periphery and multiple entry points to access the buildings connected through a common central plaza. An underground parking on South was introduced to cater to the rising influx of vehicular traffic on site.

• City level connectivity is only from the south and west.

• No bus routes enter Nehru place

• Bus stops, informal 3 wheeler stands, parking, pedestrian crossings are all merged into one ‘survival of the fittest’ syndrome

Figure7: Nehru Place Site Plan (Site 500m x 432m)

BUILT UNBUILT

Nehru Place has a restricted built mass with high rise office towers at the edge of the site and main market blocks at the center with low heights. The entire form is a rigid 90 degrees planning with spaces opening into each other according to the orientation of each block.

The buildings are molded around the plaza which vary from 15m to 25m and opens up into 40m square open spaces on North and South of the site. The buildings around the plaza are G+5 in height and offer little shade to the plaza in the extreme climatic conditions of Delhi.

Initially planned for 5500 ECS Parking spots, the current demand for the parking exceeds 10000 cars. This results in parking spillover of above 40% onto existing roads and footpaths. The underground car parking on the south of the site caters to just 100 bikes and approx. 150 cars.

Figure9: Built unbuilt site study and site images

PEDESTRIAN

Nehru Place does not function as a local community center, as intended. 93% of visitors travel more than 2 kilometers to reach there. The transportation and infrastructure around Nehru Place were not designed to bring the multitude of people travelling long distances from various parts of the city. Public transportation drop off and pickup points are separated from Nehru place by a circumference of parking

There is no pedestrian connectivity from bus or metro stations. The accessibility at the periphery of Nehru Place is poor due to steps, barriers, and spill over parking. There are no entry or exit signs, maps or info graphics to direct visitors. Nehru Place spans 38 hecatres, yet much of the crowd is concentrated around the main plaza, where hawkers are set up throughout the common areas. Meanwhile,other areas are under utilized, neglected, and accruing garbage.

EXISTING UTCI TEMEPRATURES

To understand the thermal comfort for the existing site conditions, a typical day for summer between 1 pm and 6 pm was considered for the study and the following indices were observed:

1. Extreme heat stress in the plazas with temperatures above 38°C

on south of the site

shaded from the high built mass around

Mutual shading and shadows by building have reduced the heat stress in the surrounding environment.

KEY AREAS OF FOCUS

[PERCEPTION OF “THE” SPACE]

The uncertainty of the transitional space between 2 or more buildings, ambiguous in nature is what drew interest to study this space environmentally and make it more inclusive and multi-dimensional. These open spaces can serve different functions for different people at different times of the day. The plazas and entry walkways establishing connections within the site between different buildings is the first perception anyone gets while entering the site. To revive these spaces with a climate conscious approach, formulating a catalogue of possible design interventions is the ultimate idea for studying this topic.

The site offers a huge potential for a sustainable and inclusive interventions at various connected scales. The aim is to utilize the importance of public spaces as a powerful tool to connect the needs of sustainable urban environment with its neighborhoods. The open areas have been perceived into three broad types of study spaces to be investigated: Open plazas, connecting spaces and facades affecting the microclimate of the plazas; Internal corridors acting as transition spaces connecting the three plazas and parking spaces.

This phase of the Thesis study was carried out to research and identify the areas of high heat and thermal stress and air quality in the base site and the changes that can be achieved by integrating urban and building vegetation, materiality in the urban spaces and shading into such spaces. The study has been conducted into 6 scenarios with different intervention combinations to determine the best possible solution for an ideal space and its application in sites with similar urban fabric. The revised design interventions are based on a rigorous on site and analytical analysis of local microclimatic conditions as well as the investigation with the end users. Climate conscious and low cost solutions are adopted in these urban plazas and streets and their efficiency aided with the help of analytical simulations to improve the quality of air in these spaces and enhance the human thermal comfort. The solar radiation and wind analysis is taken up with Grass hopper plugins Ladybug and Eddy 3D and the entire thermal comfort modelling was achieved on ENVI met. Extensive research for urban materiality was considered including local availability of materials, local trees and plants specific to the climatic conditions and requirements, thermal and reflective characteristic of materials and the possible reuse and multiplicity of the module designed.

BASE INPUTS FOR OUTDOOR ANALYSIS

After identifying the base site, the worst case scenario in the hottest month of June was undertaken. For the base cases and the improved scenarios, the simulations were set for June 21, with one hour of the early evening period chosen for comparative analysis. The set timing has seen significant levels of pollution. The pollutant levels were undertaken from Central Pollution Control Board which were used for the analysis in all the scenarios. For the set date, the average PM2.5 concentration for the day was 160µg/m3 and PM10 concentration was 120µg/m3. To further investigate the effects of vegetation and material thermal properties on the outdoor environment, the simulation period was selected be tween 11am 4pm. The average dry bulb temperature for the day was 34.75°C and the wind was pre dominantly from North west of the site with average velocity of 2m/s. The model has been simulated as closely with the existing conditions with trees having similar Leaf area density and characteristics as local trees on site. The buildings have been modelled in respect to its physical dimensions without openings with ‘concrete’ material applied matching to the existing conditions.

The main aspects studied in the simulations are Universal Thermal Climate Index (UTCI) along with Mean radiant temperature, Pedestrian comfort, and the pollutant concentration (PM2.5 and PM10)

Figure 17: Base simulation conditions as mapped for ENVI met simulation

SITE SPECIFIC METHODOLOGY

The base site with existing conditions was taken as Scenario 0 maintaining similar characteristics of the existing site. The first three scenarios were individual scenarios to understand the implication of each of the intervention on the site. Scenario 1 included nature based urban vegetation in and around the open plazas and streets. Scenario 2 considered the albedo and thermal properties of the materials. Scenario3wassimulatedwithgreenfacadesandroofs.Scenario4 6consideredthe combined effect of the first three simulations without eliminating the existing trees and vegetation on the site. All the scenarios were then compared against Universal Thermal climate Index (UTCI)to measure and indicate thermal comfort, highlighting the areas investigated for thermal stress and suitable guidelines that could be followed. On a UTCI scale, temperatures above 46°C accounts for extreme heat stress, between 38-46°C is very strong heat stress, 32-28°C is strong and from 26-32°C is considered moderate. As per the literature analysis, the ultimate idea is to bring the heat stress downto more comfortable indices on the UTCI scale which are achieved through the above mentionedscenarios.

Figure 18 (top to bottom): Base simulation condition; Improved vegetation conditions; Green facades and roof; Improved material albe do simulated individually to understand the affect on pollution levels and thermal comfort

URBAN GREENING CONSIDERATIONS

As mentioned in the site analysis, the site of Nehru Place boasts a plethora of trees, for the base model two types of Deciduous trees were chosen to represent similar characteristics:

1. High LAD, Cylindrical trees, 5m

2. High LAD, Spherical trees, 15m

To better understand the effect of vegetation on the site and its surroundings, a simple exercise to understand the impact of tree heights and LAD on surrounding air temperatures and overall comfort was modelled in ENVI met. This was undertaken with an aim to investigate the typology of trees to be kept in mind while designing for different spaces. Trees were modelled similar to the characteristics of local trees present on the site. The height of the trees was taken as average as some trees could grow more than 30m in their later life cycles.

Also, since the buildings on the site are offset on the façade by 1.5m, façade greening included only green vegetation in the interventions. Green roofs were modelled based on extensive roof system of soil and aggregates in addition to small shrubs and grass.

The inferences from this exercise and their possible application locations are summaried in the table below:

Mean Radiant Temperature Typology 1,5,6 (Medium trunk Cylindrical and Spherical trees)

Local

Relative

Typology 5,6,7 (Medium trunk, low LAD)

Typology 5,6 (Medium trunk, low LAD)

UTCI Typology 5,6 (Medium trunk, low LAD)

Figure

Small and Medium height trees with medium trunk with low LAD performed best for MRT, low LAD ensured heat doesn’t trap between the trees

Trees with low LAD, small or medium trunk, allowed for local wind movement better than trees with dense foliage

Ashoka, Neem, Teak

Pakad tree, Peepal, Banyan

Ashoka, Neem, Gulmohar

Medium trunk trees with low LAD performed best under extreme weather conditions of Delhi, bringing the UTCI within moderate range (under 38°C) from extreme heat stress.

OBSERVATIONS:

Ashoka, Neem, Gulmohar

1. Medium trunk trees performed best under the extreme heat stress and could be possibly used in plazas and spaces with pedestrian movement.

2. Low LAD trees worked best for reducing the temperature of the surroundings by 2 3°C and are best to be used where seating can be proposed.

3. Cylindrical trees work best for streets and pavements for pedestrian movement as they don’t completely block out the sky view and help in reducing the UTCI index

4. Large trees work best in spill out spaces and Parking shading and providing comfort to the drivers waiting in the space.

Strategies to

urban plazas :

study

in New Delhi, India

Figure 56: Study of different vegetation typology on UTCI and its factors

[ URBAN GREENING]

The exercise for urban vegetation with different tree types and heights proved instrumental in understanding the relationship of trees, plants and grass with its urban surroundings. The Scenarios were compared against base case to better understand the effects of the interventions on the plazas and parking spaces. Comparing the Base case with Scenario 1 of increased urban vegetation and Scenario 3 of green walls and roofs, taking June 21, 2pm as the worst-case scenario with significant pollutant levels, it was clearly indicative of significant improvements in the overall UTCI indices.

The UTCI simulation indicates extreme heat stress in all three plazas and the East West Street with temperatures above 42°C. The North South Street was comparatively shaded with temperatures between 35 37°C. Parking spaces too were exposed to high heat stress with temperatures beyond 40°C. Comparing this base scenario against Scenario 1 with improved vegetation and Scenario 3 with green facades and roofs, it was clearly easy to spot the effect of trees and plants on the plazas, streets and the parking.

INTERNAL PLAZAS AND STREETS

The simulations show a clear impact in Scenario 1 with temperatures in plazas dropping by 2 4°C with shaded areas below 34°C. Although the plazas are still under extreme heat stress, the temperature in shaded areas dropped below 35°C which lowered the heat stress from extreme to strong. Under the influence of green walls and roofs, areas near them showed moderate heat stress with temperatures dropping below 32°C.

The findings show that the presence of trees has a significant favorable influence on the thermal comfort. With the installation of green facades and extensive roof system, however, it does not rep resent any dramatic alteration on the plazas.

To better understand the outcomes of UTCI, one of its major factors Mean Radiant Temperature (MRT) was also studied (See Appendix 1). It was clearly indicative that the green facades and roofs dropped the average MRT from 47°C to 43.5°C. This is important to suggest the applicability of these building integrated vegetation in specific urban contexts to modify the environmental characteristics.

PARKING AND SPILL OUTS

In this case, studying parking and spill out zones was also important as explained earlier. The improved vegetation (Scenario 1) showed a clear change in the parking spaces around the site go down from 42+ 44°C to 35 38°C from extreme heat stress to strong heat stress.

Studying the simulations, it was also clear the benefits the trees provide to its surrounding urban environment. Areas with tree canopies show a clear drop in temperatures from 65 68°C in exposed urban plazas down to 50-56°C depending on the LAD. Overall, the findings and observations clearly showed an improved thermal comfort but still within strong heat stress levels.

Figure 23: Scenario 1 (top) and Scenario 3 (bottom) for UTCI scenario (ENVI met)

URBAN GREENING]

Investigating the pollutant levels and concentrations, it was feasible to observe that although the pollutant concentration levels for PM2.5 and PM10 were extremely high, more than 150µg/m3 along the source i.e., the vehicular pollution on the roads surrounding the site, it was observed that the pollutant level inside the sites was contained mostly within 45µg/m3. To better understand the flow andmovement of these pollutants, the base case scenario was compared against Scenario 1 and 3 forimproved vegetation, green facades and green roofs. The primary observation was increasing the tree cover increased the movement of wind from North east of the site bringing marginally increased pollutant levels inside the site. Increasing vegetation cover on North south Street resulted in accumulation of these pollutants thereby increasing the pollution levels, In case of Green facades and roof the pollutant concentration did not change muchfrom the improved vegetation scenario. The outcomes are in line with the canopy effect or the trap ping effect of trees and plants in general.

It is safe to conclude that vegetation, although in general increasing the pollution concentration levels in the plazas and internal streets, the increase (5µg/m3) is marginal with only trees in North south Street bringing major change by increasing the concentration from 15µg/m3 to 25 30 µg/m3.

Parking and open spill out spaces on East and South of the site are within permissible WHO limits of un der 15µg/m3 due to the natural geometry of the buildings around. High concentration levels are observed along the West Parking spaces on the site which are directly exposed to the pollutant source.

OBSERVATIONS:

1. Urban greens have helped lowering the extreme heat stress in plazas and internal streets but have resulted in 5 10µg/m3 increase in PM2.5 levels along the North and West of the site.

2. East plazas and parking spaces perform better in Scenario 1 with lesser heat stress and pollutant concentration compared to the rest of the site.

3. Due to the prominent wind direction form North west, the site is protected from the major pollution source: the main arterial Ring Road on South of the site.

4. It would be important to understand the combined effect of urban and building facade vegetation to better understand the micro climatic solutions on the site.

5. The North south Street performed better in terms of UTCI due to mutual building shading so vegetation cover could be minimal or avoided to let the wind pass through the site and not let the pollutantsconcentrate as visible in the simulations.

Figure 24: Correlation between increased vegetation (Scenario 1) on wind and PM2.5 concentrations on the North South corridor

URBAN MATERIALITY]

Investigating Scenario 2 with improved materials, the table on the right highlights the existing vs improved material albedo scenarios. The whole site of Nehru Place is rather simplified in terms of mate rials. The parking’s follow the standard asphalt road construction while the Plazas and the pavements are currently existing in red, yellow and beige colored pavement blocks. No proper tree grates and hardscaped site has resulted in high surface temperatures which has then directly impacted the MRT and UTCI thermal comfort levels on the site. To understand the effect of materials on the site, A through literature analysis helped understand the thermal properties of the material. Another problem faced by the site is excessive water logging during the rainy months of the year. This called for environment friendly materials with high albedo levels as well as high porosity to help seep the water on the ground.

Comparing against the base case, not much difference in UTCI temperatures were observed on the main plazas and streets but areas under shade proved to lower the extreme heat stress. The high UTCI temperatures on the North and West parking of the site were also brought down by 2 3°C by replacing the asphalt roads with concrete and grass pavers. This helped in better retention of the ground and proved highly beneficial during rainy seasons.

The simulation chart below clearly shows the change in surface temperatures on the site with change in materials. A change of 4-5°C in the interval plazas with just using a light-colored paving surface is significant and this result could then be combined with Scenarios 1 and 3 to better understand the micro climatic environment.

CONSIDERATIONS:

Following the thermal properties of materials from the literature analysis, the spaces were divided on the site as per their usage and function. Since Delhi experiences extreme hot weather followed by the monsoon season, it was important to understand the porosity of materials in addition to their thermal properties.

Albedo was an important function considered in the base case model of ENVI met and theimproved material scenarios. Further consideration was made towards the spaces as per their usageon the site. Spaces that required seating or had long term human interaction were tacked with high albedo materials while Parking spaces or pavements along the streets were improved keeping inmind the local availability of the materials as well.

Figure 27: Albedo of existing and improved materiality (top); Existing materials on site (bottom)

The first three scenarios were further combined in three different ways: Scenario 4 highlighted the combined effect of vegetation and materials, Scenario 5 looked at combined effect of urban vegetation, green roofs and walls with materiality and Scenario 6 looked at the effects of shading theurban plazas as an addition to the three interventions.

The simulations compared against the base case scenario showed drastic improvements with aver age temperatures dropping by 3-4°C from 45.21°C to 41.65°C. Overall in respect to the site Scenario 5 worked best in improving the outdoor thermal comfort in the plazas, internal streets and parking spaces.

Addition of shading in the plazas, however, showed an increase in UTCI temperatures compared to non-shaded spaces, while the shading on the east-west street proved beneficial will temperatures dropping by 2°C. This was helpful for understanding the hawker location on the site. Moreover,the wind provided additional local comfort as shown. Overall, the vegetation and materiality combined showed a positive improvement in temperature and thermal conditions on the site.

Observing the potential air temperature with the best case scenario, it was also observed that in crease in urban and building integrated vegetation along with change in materiality could drastically improve the micro climatic condition of the urban plazas. All the three plazas, minimum 40m x 40mwith 15m high building blocks on all 4 sides, integrated with urban greens and extensive roof systemshowed a drop of 2°C and the streets with height to width ratio of minimum 1:0.9 showed further re duction in air temperatures by 3°C.

Figure 28: Potential air temperature for Base case (Scenario 0) vs Best case (Scenario 5)

INTERVENTIONS - PLAZAS SPACE FOR TRANSIT, RELAXATION AND SOCIAL INTERACTION

NORTH PLAZA

The North Plaza caters to the pedestrian traffic coming from the North of the site and is the main point of entry on the site. The Plaza approx. 40m x 50m in size, is enclosed within mixed use commercial blocks. Currently it serves the purpose of transition from the secondary road to the internal of the site.

ISSUES OBSERVED:

1. 95% of the area hardscaped

Only 4 trees present in the plaza

Lack of seating spaces, people tend to couch on the floor

Extreme heat stress as observed in the Base case simulation

ISSUED SOLVED:

Introduction of softscape surfaces

Seating areas and improved urban furniture

Increase in tree density

Green plants and climbers in the facade offset of the buildings

Extensive green roof system

Water features introduced for aided evaporative cooling

SIMULATION OBSERVATIONS:

1. The results, simulated for 2pm on 21 of June as the worst case scenario, showed a drop in Mean

Temperature levels with the increase in urban vegetation and grass cover.

2. Areas shaded from the existing built mass showed a further decrease in MRT with UTCI temperatures lowering from extreme heat stress to moderate heat stress.

3. Spaces shaded from trees dropped the heat stress from extreme to strong.

INTERVENTIONS

FOR

WEST PLAZA

INTERACTION

The West Plaza is the busiest in terms of pedestrian traffic on the site due to the presence of commercial IT market and food joints. The site at present is hardscaped with no vegetation cover in the central space.

ISSUES OBSERVED:

1. 95% of the area hardscaped

2. Only 2 trees present in the plaza

3. Lack of seating spaces

4. Extreme heat stress as observed in the Base case simulation

5. Large cutout in center with hardscaped surface at the basement for parking; not utilized

ISSUED SOLVED:

1. Introduction of softscape surfaces

2. Seating areas and improved urban furniture

3. Increase in tree density

4. Green plants and climbers in the facade offset of the buildings

Extensive green roof system

SIMULATION OBSERVATIONS:

1. This plaza as observed in the base case scenario showed the highest level of heat stress on the site.

2. Nature based interventions and reduction in heat albedo of the materials showed UTCI temperatures dropping from 48°C to 41°C.

3. The local wind conditions as observed on the site along with increased vegetative cover further aided in lowering the heat stress temperatures.

4. The basement cutout utilized for softscape and green cover with seating spaces and urban furnitures for improved microclimatic conditions in the plaza.

Figure

UTCI temperature analysis for West Plaza (top); Environmental interventions section (bottom)

INTERVENTIONS

FOR

INTERNAL STREETS

The streets along the east west axis and north south axis serve as the connections interlinking the tree plazas and are 15 25m wide. The high concentration of hawkers and street vendors as observed on the site was due to the comparatively cooler temperatures as simulated in the base case compared to the rest of the site. Understanding of these spaces was essential due to the high influx of pedestrians in this space for transition.

ISSUES OBSERVED:

1. 100% of the area hardscaped

2. Only 7 trees present in the plaza

3. Lack of seating spaces

4. No formalized space for street vendors creating a chaos of the space

4. High heat stress in hottest months; use of plastic sheets as roof covers that further accelerate MRT

SIMULATION OBSERVATIONS:

1. Urban furniture and modules along with urban vegetation helped in reducing the UTCI temperatures to moderate heat stress

3. The local wind conditions as observed on the site along with increased vegetative cover further aided in lowering the heat stress temperatures.

4. Mutual shading from the buildings and modules helped in reducing direct solar gains from 5kWh/ sqm to 1kWh/sqm