Questioning Legibility at Street Scale: The Case of Ismet Inonu Boulevard in Gazimagusa

Well-designed public open spaces such as streets, squares and parks play a central role in making a place livable as they act as motors of social interaction; creating a ground for people to come together in the cities. Amongst these public spaces, streets tend to play a significant role in people’s lives as they both act as channels for transportation and also a medium for social interaction. It is this dual function that makes streets a common research focus for academics. In order to create successful streets that do not only serve for motorized transportation but act as an interactive ground for people, it is vital to have legible streets which are visually and physically attractive as well as graspable so that people can easily orient themselves. Within this perspective, the thesis questions how legibility can be achieved at street scale; building upon a literature review that helps create a checklist for designing better quality and more graspable streets not only for car users but pedestrians who add value and meaning to any public space. The thesis focuses on a selected case study in chapter three, Ismet Inonu Boulevard in Famagusta, Cyprus, where the checklist created in chapter two is evaluated thoroughly. Being an important axis connecting the Eastern Mediterranean University –a symbol of the city- to the historic old town in the heart of the city, Ismet Inonu Boulevard is analyzed in three sections through the help of an in-depth evaluation of physical characteristics of the street and its activity patterns. Using a series of techniques such as direct observations, cognitive mapping, interviews and questioners, the research collects the necessary data for the analysis of the case. The results of the case study indicates that Ismet Inounu Boulevard being part of a general uniform grid planning system offers little surprises to its users. As a commercial street, although it offers images that people can easily remember, the discontinuity of commercial functions along the whole route as well as lack of necessary qualities in the physical structure of the street do not create strong reasons for the pedestrians to use the street. Being a recently developed artery, the street does not possess landmarks of historical importance. Offering little opportunities for the pedestrians, the street is largely dominated by cars and mostly used as a means of vehicular transportation. The findings and results further leads to recommendations for improving the conditions of the selected case so that the legibility of the streets can be enhanced. Keywords: Successful Public Open Space, Street, Legibility, Ismet Inonu Boulevard, Famagusta.