Policies, Regulation, Data and Statistics in Urban Planning

One of the discussion conducted in class was the effect of regulation and policy on the planning of the city. The regulation and policy of planning are usually designed based on statistic and data conducted on that particular region based on precedence available in close proximity or of similar scale. Urban designers relies on data and statistic in order to design an urban planning project of a particular place. However, as discussed in class, this could lead to a limitation of the effectiveness in the livability of the particular place. Data and statistics could provide a framework for urban planning but it should not be the only criteria that should be met. In my opinion, data and statistics relied too heavily on the assumption that all users falls strictly into the numerical majority of which the data and statistics shows. In addition, the data only hold true during the year that it was recorded and rarely stands the test of time as there are many agents of change that will render the recorded data to be obsolete over time. For example, there will be migration of residents, both in and out, which affect the human demographic of the site and subsequently putting the data gathered earlier as outdated information. This would have a huge impact for the project as the objective of the project may not be met and while it could carry on to provide its function, in the long run it could lead to a failed project.

While there are no guarantee over the success of a planning project or any built project for that matter, I believe that the sole-reliance of data and statistics of regulation and planning policy do not necessarily mean that the project is bound to succeed. In my opinion, in order to minimize such risks and to maximize the livability aspect of a place, studies which centers on human behavior and the growing economic and social trend of a particular region should be conducted through numerous observations. The planner and designer’s understanding of a place and the demographic is just as crucial in providing insights on the planning of that particular region if not  more important that the understanding of planning regulations and policies. The subsequent post for this week will be dedicated into case studies which represents planning projects that may have failed due to the rigidity in the initial planning procedure.