Modern city planning studies how people interact with elements of the urban environment and each other. It seeks to determine what a city should be and meet the needs of its inhabitants. The city structure is widely dependent on external factors such as weather conditions, global diseases, and others. The question for urbanists following the results of the coronavirus epidemic is how to make the city resistant to quarantine. The emerging demand conditions the importance of the topic for improving city planning procedures in terms of the pandemic of COVID-19 that hit all major world cities (Kakderi, Oikonomaki, & Papadaki, 2021). Hence, it is vital to elaborate new strategies for more resilient urban design.
There is no environment that would guarantee against infection with the virus. It is essential to imagine how the population moves around the city in urban planning – this is also one of the pandemic lessons. Approximately 95 percent of all cases of COVID-19 in the first months of the spread of infection occurred in cities (Batty, 2020). The pandemic has impoverished another 120 million people, and the quality of life worldwide has declined by 23 percent (Pineda & Corburn, 2020). Throughout the pandemic, local authorities have been responsible for quickly and decisively creating a barrier to the virus. In many places, municipal authorities have coped with this task with honor. People who live without basic amenities become infected more easily and transmit the virus to others (Kakderi et al., 2021). Therefore, it is imperative to create everyday living conditions for citizens, and for this, it is necessary to fight inequality.
Numerous megacities decided to impose restrictions by shutting down restaurants, malls, and other public facilities. In addition, the authorities demanded isolation, which, it seemed, was not an ideal means of fighting infections (Pineda & Corburn, 2020). In order to keep people from social contact, propaganda had to explain that a person is not a friend to a person but a threat to health. On the other hand, public transport could not have been excluded from the proper city functioning. Meanwhile, many cities have relied on a culture of interaction by introducing masks, social distancing, and vaccinations. Citizens’ self-organization, which was highly supported by local authorities, was perhaps the most effective policy in the fight against the pandemic.
Regardless of the measures undertaken, the urban areas have undergone drastic changes since the beginning of the coronavirus epidemic. Numerous businesses went bankrupt and shut down, emptying the streets. What is more, one-fifth of the population moved out to countryside areas seeking more isolation and protection (Pineda & Corburn, 2020). However, there is a positive outcome, too – the city roads have become less congested and contaminated because citizens stopped going out every day.
Even though it is impossible to completely re-plan the city for emergencies, it is necessary to introduce measures to mitigate the probable consequences of a pandemic. For instance, it is worth creating multifunctional residential quarters where all the essential services are within walking distance (Batty, 2020). This strategy will prevent residents from visiting crowded facilities and spreading the virus. Experts have studied the possibility of a layout that will allow commercial and residential buildings to be located nearby, including affordable housing (Lennon, 2021). Such complexes can contribute to improving public health, ecology, and economic development. Increasing the autonomy of housing can significantly reduce the load on urban networks, waste removal and recycling systems, water purification, as well as food production and delivery.
Furthermore, it is indispensable to develop a legally binding spatial and temporal zoning of the urban area and introduce various modes of its use. It should be based on indicators of social distancing, the permissible concentration of people, and the time of their joint stay in the same space (Lennon, 2021). Changing the opening hours of stores and institutions can be another option for simultaneously reducing the concentration of individuals in the same place.
Ultimately, the interaction between representatives of governments, civil society, and the private sector within the framework of a new social contract would be the most successful initiative. Such a contract should provide for the financing of citizens’ basic income, universal medical care, and affordable housing. This strategy could help the vulnerable groups of the population primarily. In case they do not have lodgings, they will be forced to reside in the streets, which can contribute to a broader spread of infection. Hence, this policy is aimed at protecting public health.
In summary, urban planning can be significantly affected by the surge of a pandemic and destroy the infrastructure. Despite the impossibility of preparing the cities for the rise of pandemics, it is still vital to introduce the security measure to be undertaken in case of emergency. This policy should be aimed at reducing the number of people staying in the same place at the same time. In general, the world’s big cities have learned great lessons from the COVID-19 pandemic.