The purpose of this coursework is to study the CBD structure of a settlement. I chose the town Tervuren because it is located close to the capital of Brussels and it is not a very densely populated area

Hypotheses:

1. A town centre has a distinct CBD, identified by the ground floor land-use.
2. The quality of the built up environment will be higher in the CBD than in the surrounding housing areas.
3. The CBD will be more congested than outside the CBD.
4. The CBD should be further improved to attract more tourists.

Map of Europe:

Map of Belgium:

 

        

Map of Flemish Brabant:

Map of Tervuren:

Hypotheses:

1. A town centre has a distinct CBD, identified by the ground floor land-use.

The CBD of a town is usually found in the area where the land value is highest (poor housing), where shops and offices are located. It should also have the highest pedestrian and vehicle count. The CBD should be the centre or meeting point of all the transport links, therefore making it the most accessible area. All of this is supported by the Burgess Model. I will identify the CBD of Tervuren by the help of the land use map /booking sheet and transect we made. The land use map/booking sheet will help because I recorded all the different land uses of the different sites and purposes of them. The transect will give more detail. I predict that that it will be situated near the offices, shopping and market area, which is close to the centre of Tervuren.

2. The quality of the built up environment will be higher in the CBD than in the surrounding housing areas.  

I predict that the quality of the built up environment will be higher in the CBD that in the surrounding housing areas because the CBD contains most high order functions as a result quality built up environment will be higher so town looks more attractive. This will mean it will attract tourists and more business in the area. This will lead to an increase in the bid rent value for land in CBD, as there is land on demand. On the other hand, in the surrounding housing areas the quality of the built up area will not be high because the inhabitants will not spend lots of money to make their houses attractive.

3. The CBD will be more congested than outside the CBD.

I predict that the CBD will be more congested than outside the CBD because firstly it has many functions and thus has a higher sphere of influence. CBD has most of the businesses, so commuters from nearby villages will be coming in everyday using some sort of transport. There will also be trucks coming in for supplies for the different businesses. Because the CBD is the main shopping area people from all parts of the town will come in, meaning more vehicles, meaning more congested.

4. The CBD should be further improved to attract more tourists.

I believe that the CBD should be further improved to attract more tourists so more money can be made in the tourist sector and shops because at the moment they don’t have much for tourists and the tourist sector can be very profitable. Furthermore, restaurants need high pop threshold to support them and locate in centre with costs.

Sequence of Study:                                                                                                                            On the 21st of June we gathered around the market area of Tervuren. We were first divided into groups of three. Our first task was to map the land-use of all the streets on the base map and as a group measure a detailed transect of the Brusselsesteenweg. I then carried out a street quality index at all of the ten sample sites. Our third task was to do a pedestrian count at one site and then do a vehicle count at one site. We then collated all our data, moving on to independent work. For example: analysing data.

Land-use key:                                                                                                          

Photo for SQI:

        

Booking Sheet:

Photo for 4th Hypotheses: