Research findings indicate that there are some advantages or benefits of multiple uses of spaces in areas with shortages or limited spaces like inner cities.
The following are the opportunities for the multiple uses of space with a shortage of limited space. The study has discovered some opportunities due to the use of urban streets within inner cities, whereby some of the opportunities are for individual benefits and others are for the government.
1) Increases revenue to the municipality: as street use increases within inner cities, it also increases the revenue to the government, given the fact that the increase of users within the streets is leased to those involved in the business. The more sales increase the more the government collects taxes from the street users, especially street vendors, shopkeepers, and motorists.
2) Maximum utilization of space within the streets: streets within inner cities are accompanied by maximum use of street space available, given the fact that many people are attracted to the CBD which leads to concentration and competition for limited space available, where each space within the street is used accordingly unlike to suburbs.
3) The vibrancy of the streets from morning to evening: multiple uses of street possess critical mass of people that gives good urban places their vibrancy. A mixture of people and activities makes streets become active throughout the day. More activity on the streets improves security by increasing eye on the street, meaning that more people are out on the streets deterring crimes simply by being there.
4) Employment opportunity for people: many street vendors have engaged themselves in the informal business, where they find a place to support their lives, therefore streets space within inner cities has increased the living standard of many people in urban areas.
Also, the research discovered a number of challenges emerging as a result of street use patterns in inner cities.
Study shows that streets have no clear separation between pedestrian walkways and Motorist, hence pedestrian is forced to use street shoulders and carriageway for their movement. During the morning time, Congo Street becomes less congested whereby pedestrian mostly uses the carriageway. During Noon and evening time, the movement within Congo Street become worse for pedestrian since all part of the street has been taken by street vendors. Also, during this time pedestrians contest for space with street vendors and motorists. As known that streets are supposed to have separate walkways because streets within urban areas are public spaces that contain different activities such as social interaction and leisure. Street is perceived as being for people whereby people feel comfortable walking down the street, even if there is a motorist. But in Kariakoo’s streets, people are not comfortable because there is no separation between the walkway and the motorized way.
Historically Kariakoo was designed as a residential neighbourhood with narrow streets and a grid iron pattern. The transformation of Kariakoo from a residential to a commercial neighbourhood resulted in mobility challenges due to narrow streets. According to field observation done in Congo, Nyamwezi, Swahili, and Sikukuu Street shows that Congo Street becomes narrow during noontime. During this time streets become narrow due to high concentrations of people and activities within a street. The size of the street is constant but due to the occupation of spaces by street users such as street vendors, therefore street becomes narrow and sometimes it becomes like an open-air market. Pedestrian sometimes compete with vehicles so as to reach their destinations and sometimes they have to wait for vehicles to pass and then they proceed.
The study also shows that almost all streets become narrow from 12 am - 15 pm when streets become occupied by many activities and uses. During this hour street vendors take every part of the street and use it to display their wares on the roadway and others display along the shops. This situation makes streets narrow due to concentrations of those activities that have occupied the street space from the shoulders of the street to the carriageways.
The analysis further indicates that the inner-city streets in Kariakoo are unique in the following aspects
1) Gridiron pattern of streets which increases the connectivity within the commercial neighborhoods.
2) Narrow streets with limited capacity compared with the number of street users.
3) Presence of temporal use of street spaces to accommodate more than one activity. This is evidenced by temporal structures such as tables for selling goods by petty traders.
4) High density of people compared to automobiles. Pedestrians form a dominant group using streets.
5) Dominant use of on-street parking due to limited spaces.
6) Kariakoo streets are predominantly gray spaces with a lack of green spaces.
7) The intensity and type of street activities vary from time to time.
(a)
(b)
Source: Field survey, 2019.
Plate 1. Narrow streets in inner cities streets.
Study shows that 100 percent of response indicate that, in Congo Street, there is high space competition from different users. Competition for space in Congo Street starts from morning to evening but mostly from 12 am - 15 pm when there is a high concentration of people in the street. 100 percent of the response indicates that people prefer using Congo Street since it’s the center for business in Kariakoo, and it offers affordable goods at low price. The study shows that Congo Street has many activities and users which takes place at a different time interval. Due to this street becomes congested and leads to competition and conflicts between the users of the street. The respondents also said that street vendors have taken part of the street leaving very little space for people to pass, and sometimes other street vendors are forced to stand on the carriageway waiting for the customers and in so doing, lead to competition within the street. The study also shows that Nyamwezi Street experiences high competition in street space due to the high number of people and activities conducted there. 60 percent of responses from street users indicate that space competition mostly occurs from 12 am to 15 pm when the majority of the street users occupy the spaces for different purposes. But in the case of Swahili and Sikukuu, there is average competition for space unlike Congo and Nyamwezi Street. Study shows that 100 percent of the response indicate that space competition within Sikukuu Street do occur in noon hours because this is the time when most people uses the street.
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the study shows that 81 percent of respondents said that space competition within the street normally occurs during the noon hours, and this indicates that competition for space is influenced by time.
The analysis further indicates that the inner-city streets in Kariakoo experience space competition in the following aspects.
1) Gridiron pattern of streets which attract motorist users with perceived easy permeability due to increased connectivity within the commercial neighborhoods.
2) The presence of a wide variety of street users including pedestrians, cyclists, petty traders, car users, and others with no separation from each other increases the competition within the street.
3) Time determines the user of the street and the type of competing street activities. The number of street users differs from time to time in a day which further determines the intensity of activities within the streets.
4) Streets act as market space for goods sold in adjacent shops.
5) Multiple activities with the streets.
According to field surveys and observations in Congo, Nyamwezi, Sikukuu, and Swahili streets, there are inadequate parking spaces to accommodate vehicles within a street. Street vendors have occupied almost all parts of the street especially vendors who usually use wooden structures, and have invaded the parking area. Street vendors have taken the parking space by putting their structure on those spaces which become difficult for drivers by the time they want to park their vehicles. Taxi drivers have to wait for the vendor to move their wares so as to leave space for vehicles. The study has also found that the action of drivers to wait for vendors to move their ware in the parking spaces causes many challenges within the street such as congestion and delay of the journey to pedestrians. During noon time parking spaces become inadequate due to the fact that street spaces become occupied by street vendors and they compete for customers because this is the time when more pedestrians visit the streets for shopping.
The analysis further indicates that the parking facilities and services in inner-city streets of Kariakoo experience the following aspects.
(a)
(b)
Source: Field survey, 2019.
Plate 2. Drivers struggling for parking spaces in inner city streets.
1) Kariakoo being the national commercial hub attracts a wide range of street users including car drivers who need parking facilities or parking spaces.
2) On-street parking practices have become common on most of the streets creating challenges for pedestrians.
3) The presence of small plots in Kariakoo has created difficulties for developers to design and provide parking within the building spaces. As a result, vertical parking facilities are not available within Karikoo commercial neighborhoods.
4) During peak hours, pedestrians dominate the streets and on-street parking becomes difficult.
5) Street spaces have become market spaces used by informal traders creating challenges for motorized users and parking spaces.
Pickpocketing is the most common crime in Congo Street, where ladies are the most victims. A study shows that 74 percent of respondents singled out that crimes in Congo Street do happen from 12 a.m. to 15 p.m. when congestion and concentration become high (
The study shows those urban crime occurs in Congo street is pick pocketing, where 76 percent of the respondents singled out that pickpocketing most occur during noon time (12 am to 15 pm), while 16 percent said the pickpocketing most occur in evening hour the time people go back to their home. And 8 percent
of the respondents stated that pickpocketing occurs during the morning. This shows that crimes can be influenced by time, since during noon hours people concentrate in the street, and given this fact, people do take the opportunity of congestion to commit crimes as the study tells that the majority of the users are attracted to the street using noon hours.
Also,
Study shows that, with the increasing concentration of population and activities in a street, particularly during noon time, congestion has become a major problem in Congo Street. Whereby the main cause of congestion in Congo Street is due to increase in urban population with a high number of activities conducted within there. According to field observation in Congo Street, pedestrians and street vendors move from different areas to Congo Street for business and shopping, Street vendors believe that only Congo Street is a place with opportunity to sell their goods. Mostly congestion occurs at each junction of Congo Street because they are the entrance point for the customers and street vendors. The study also has identified that, time has an influence on urban street utilizations as most of the activities and challenges do occur during noon time (12 am to 15 pm).
Many respondents singled out congestions as being one of the problem rearing competition for space within Congo Street. Respondents said that sometimes street tight even space for movement become inadequate to all users. Study shows that 88 percent of the respondents said congestion normally occurs in noon
hours, most of the street vendors move from other street to Congo Street for potential customers who come to shop there as seen in
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Activities that have occupied large area in Congo Street are apparels and shoes business which almost each part of the street has this business. Congo Street attracts a lot of traffic as evidenced from the fact that it is a main street with good business opportunity since then. This traffic is viewed as potential customers by street vendors and tax drivers who then get attracted to wards the street from other streets within kariakoo. Another source of congestion in Congo street is due to the fact that, Government have started to register street vendors which gives them freedom to display their wares everywhere, as they view Congo street as no man’s land where they do not require any permission for use. Because of this perception, a large number of vendors have occupied all section of Congo Street where they have put up wooden temporary structure from where they operate. Some of them who do not have temporary structure to move along the
street from one part of the street to another, and others are just standing on the carriage way waiting for pedestrian to come. Some of the street vendors compete for space with other street users by occupying carriageway using wheelbarrows and handcarts on which they carry their goods. This action inhibits the movement of pedestrians and vehicles within Congo Street (Plate 3 and Plate 4).
Study shows that, Congo street have poor drainage system whereby the street become flooded during raining season which reduce the mobility and level of comfortability to street users, especially pedestrian and street vendors. The drainages are small in size that do not allow runoff water to flow effectively in which water exceed the size of drainage channel and overflow on the carriageway. The drainage channel available in Congo street are open which means people dispose their waste on the channel and block the flow of water. Most of the street vendors have put up their wooden structure on the drainage channel which sometimes blocks the flow of water. From these scenarios, study has find that poor street design has many effects to livelihood activities and users of urban street (Plate 5).
During raining season, street users have to wait until the flow of water on carriage way become over. This action inhibits the movement and sometimes leads to delay of journey to pedestrian who are in hurry. Pedestrian and street vendors do stand in front of the shops along the Congo Street where they rest while waiting for over flow of water to complete.
Study also shows that sometimes blocked channel of drainage retains storm water which stagnates, realising bad smell to the street.
Source: Field survey, 2019.
Plate 3. Vendors with handcart.
Source: Field survey, 2019.
Plate 4. Vendors with wooden structure.
Source: Field survey, 2019.
Plate 5. Small drainage.