Urban planning and pedestrian thermal comfort- A study of growing Melbourne city

Melbourne, which is the second largest city in Australia, is anticipated to have a population increase that will reach 6.5 million by 2050. In October 2013, Plan Melbourne was released by Victorian government, aiming to increase the density of several districts to protect the suburbs from urban sprawl. The City of Melbourne's draft municipal strategic statement identified 'City North' as a great urban renewal area which can accommodate a significant part of the growth. Given the previous heat-related incidents in Melbourne in 2009, the potential threat to human health and pedestrian comfort will be exacerbated, if planning professionals exclude climatic conscious urban design in their practices. Therefore, this study investigates the effect of the future structural plans on pedestrian thermal comfort in City North through numerical simulations. A three dimensional numerical modelling system, ENVI-met was used for the simulation. A clear reduction of average daytime Physiological Equivalent Temperatures (PET) were observed across the study area after implementing the "Plan Melbourne" strategies. The outcomes of this study will assist urban planners in developing policies which can effectively decrease the vulnerability to the heat stress at pedestrian level.