Street-Level Urban Gravity: A Quantum System Approach to Human-Centered Urban Space Design

Abstract

The fundamental questions of how the built environment influences why and where people meet have intrigued philosophers and researchers for centuries. This question has been amplified as we have witnessed the evolution of streets from vibrant public spaces to traffic conduits following the advent of the automobile and highway engineering practices. More than ever, infrastructure such as public open spaces and busy transportation networks can either have the capacity to support communal gatherings and provide societal benefits to society or polarize people and communities. However, there exists little ability to quantitatively capture the relationship between infrastructure and the intricacies of walkability and street-level activities. This paper sets the stage for discussions on how the design of the built environment can influence the use of public spaces (e.g., walkability), with profound implications for engineers, urban planners, and designers seeking to create human-centered infrastructure. The history of key themes such as social interactions supported by public open spaces, walkability, and the relationship between infrastructure and well-being are introduced in this paper, emphasizing their interplay within communities. The paper illustrates how traditional traffic flow modeling has significant limitations in capturing the intricacies of walkability and street-level activities needed to understand this relationship, motivating the exploration of quantum mechanics principles as a possible avant-garde approach to understanding the indeterminate nature of human movement within urban settings. To achieve this goal, this work introduces the concept of a "street-level urban gravity"model aiming to utilize emerging technologies within a quantum system framework to enhance the connection between urban design and engineering. Such an approach would help to empower stakeholders to design infrastructure that aligns with human-centered objectives.