Planning interventions for making safe public places

Abstract

Urban safety, also referred to as public safety, security of the public, urban safety and security, local safety, etc. in different regions of the world, all denote the aspect of safety of residents against criminal offences and violence through strategic planning, neighbourhood designing and policy interventions. The safety of residents of an urban area should be ensured 24/7 in order to achieve a safe, inclusive and accessible environment for its citizens. Urban areas face more crime rates due to their rapid growth (UN-Habitat, 2007). Studies on an international scale have revealed that 60% population of the cities situated in developing countries have been at least once a victim of crime (UN-Habitat, 2007). A comparative analysis of safety in different cities of the world conducted in 2021 by The Economist Intelligence Unit shows the safety score of two metropolitan cities from India, New Delhi and Mumbai, both of which recorded below average scores. This shows that urban safety needs to be improved and addressed in Indian cities. The research aims to make safer public spaces in urban areas through urban planning strategies. It compares various best practices adopted by different cities around the globe as well as concepts and theories associated with crime and space such as CPTED (Crime Prevention Through Environmental Design). The study attempts to make urban spaces safe and inclusive through the prevention of crime in unsafe urban areas. The case study area selected is Navi Mumbai, Maharashtra. Detail study of the case study area includes study of the pattern between land use and crime incidents in the city, assessment of spatial factors related to unsafe public spaces in a part of the city, proposals of urban planning strategies to improve safety in public spaces. Crime hotspot analysis, land use pattern of crime occurrent areas, detail assessment of physical (infrastructure) and social factors (activities) are studied and assessed for finding issues in unsafe areas. Lastly, a fear of crime map has been generated that represents the areas with high fear of crime to the ones with the least fear of crime. The study concludes with identifying unsafe areas in the case study area and suggests proposals in terms of policy recommendations and local interventions.