Geography Reference
In-Depth Information
Weekend and occasional
visits by car or public
transport
3.2 km but more
when park is larger
than 60 hectares
providing for active and passive recreation which
may contain playing fields, provided at least 40
hectares remain for other pursuits. Adequate car
parking.
District parks
20 hectares
Landscaped settings with a variety of natural
features providing for a range of activities,
including outdoor sports, children's play and
informal pursuits. Some car parking.
Weekend and occasional
visits on foot, by cycle, car
or short bus trip
1.2 km
Local parks
2 hectares
Providing for court games, children's play, sitting
out, etc. in a landscaped environment. Playing
fields if the park is large enough.
For pedestrian visitors
0.4 km
Small local parks
2 hectares
Gardens, sitting-out areas and children's
playgrounds.
Pedestrian visits especially
by old people and children,
particularly valuable in
high-density areas
0.4 km
Linear open space
Variable
Canal towpaths, footpaths, disused rail lines, etc.,
providing opportunities for informal recreation.
Pedestrian visits
Where feasible
Source: S.Williams (1995)
• playgrounds
• other sporting contexts.
In the case of the street, there has been a retreat from its focus in Victoria and Edwardian
times as a leisure environment, progressively eroded as the car has filled many such
spaces. One interesting example that runs contrary to this trend in the western world was
observed by Drummond (2000) in Vietnam. Here the street as a pseudo public leisure
space is actually expanding as a phenomenon. To assist in understanding the spatial
analysis of these resources and their interrelationship in an urban context, Williams
(1995) developed a typology of urban recreational resources. To achieve this, and to
incorporate the perception and use of the resource by urban users, he used seven variables
to construct a simple typology (Table 5.2). However, as Patmore (1983:98) rightly
argued, patterns of facility use are not related to location alone: effective access is not
synonymous with convenience of location. As a result, barriers to urban recreational use
include
physical barriers based on factors such as age, stage in the family life cycle (e.g.
dependent children) and physical access
financial barriers include direct economic constraints due to costs of participation such
as admission or membership costs (e.g. golf club fees) which may raise issues related
to the public sector's role in provision
social barriers often reinforce the financial barriers whereby lower socio-economic
groups
Table 5.2: Summary and explanation of key
variables deployed within the recreation resource
typology
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