Pathways to Equity: Mapping the Impacts of Nairobi’s Urban Form on Pedestrian Mobility

As urban growth continues to surge in Nairobi, Kenya, many development projects focus on highway and road improvement, with little to no investment channeled into better pedestrian infrastructure. The lack of proper sidewalks and crossings in Nairobi makes walking in the city a risk that residents take every day – often affecting low-income residents that rely on walking as their main mode of transportation. Although there have been improvements to pedestrian infrastructure in recent years, pedestrian crash rates remain high, particularly along highways. By using various statistical and spatial analysis models, this study explores Nairobi’s built environment and how it may impact the patterns and behaviors of pedestrians in order to better understand where and why crashes occur. This work is grounded by an exploration of the social history of Nairobi’s built forms, and how it’s colonial past has influenced the current policies that favor car-centric mega-infrastructure. It challenges the city’s pursuit of “global” status through these policies at the cost of its residents and uses data analysis as a tool to advocate for a shift in development priorities. The goal of this study is to create a framework in which the built environment can be studied to identify risk factors for pedestrian safety and to provide insights on how urban design policies can improve infrastructure for pedestrians and marginalized populations. Although focused on Nairobi, the framework is designed to be applicable to other Global Majority cities that face similar urban infrastructure challenges and data scarcity. In a context where cars and highways are prioritized, this work can be leveraged for more equitable design practices in these cities and make them safer and more accessible for captive walkers.

Name thesis:degree_name

Master

Department dc:contributor.department

Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Department of Urban Studies and Planning

Grantor dc:publisher

Massachusetts Institute of Technology

Year dc:date.issued

2024

Author dc:creator

• Kifetew, Yabework Abebe

Advisor dc:contributor.advisor

• Sevtsuk, Andres

Statement dc:rights

• In Copyright - Educational Use Permitted
• Copyright retained by author(s)

Licence dc:rights.uri

• https://rightsstatements.org/page/InC-EDU/1.0/

Handle dc:identifier.uri

https://hdl.handle.net/1721.1/156124

OAI identifier oai:identifier

oai:dspace.mit.edu:1721.1/156124