LECTURE 3B

LANDSCAPE DESIGN ELEMENTS : PAVEMENT

PAVEMENT

Questions of the lecture

Why should we study PAVEMENT ?

What is the significance of PAVEMENT ?
What are the major Factors related to PAVEMENT design?
What are the main criteria for selecting proper PAVEMENT . ?
What is the impact of using PAVEMENT . ?
How far can PAVEMENT affect infrastructure ?

PAVEMENT

Structure of the lecture

Why Pavement?
Pavement and Sustainability
Definition .. What is Pavement ?
Examples of pavement materials
Basic characteristics of pavement
Major considerations for selecting and using pavement in design*
Functional and composition uses of pavement
Design guidelines for pavement
Conclusion

Why do we need

PAVEMENT ?

Accommodate intense use

Provide direction
Suggest rate and rhythm of movement
Create repose
Indicate uses in the ground plane
Influence scale
Provide unity
Serve as a setting or a background
Provide visual interest
Establish spatial character

PAVEMENT & Landscape Architecture Elements

hy should we learn about PAVEMENT ?

PAVEMENT & Landscape Architecture Elements

hy should we learn about PAVEMENT ?

Land form
Plants
Buildings

Pavements
Site structure
Water elements

Lighting
Site furniture

Interrelationship between PAVEMENT and

SUSTAINABILITY ?
PAVEMENT has synergetic impacts to the urban environment
Designing Landscape Architecture projects (including PAVEMENT) should respond
to the different pillars of sustainability:
Structures

Social

Environmental

Economic

Political

Cultural

Landform

Water

Plants

Pavement is..
Any hard natural or artificial surface material consciously placed on the ground
plane of an outdoor space to establish a durable surface while also satisfying
design objectives.

Example of pavement

stone

Example of pavement

Brick

Example of pavement

Gravel

Example of pavement

Tile

Example of pavement

Concrete

Example of pavement

Asphalt

Example of pavement

Wood decking

Basic characteristics of pavement:

There arent good or bad materials. But there
are good and bad uses for each material

Hard durable
Fixed not changing
Permanent & strong
Low maintenance cost

Holds & reflects heat

Concrete reflects 55% of falling sunlight

Grass reflect 25% of falling sunlight

Water impervious
Impersonal, harsh

Major considerations in designing and selecting PAVEMENT

This related to the pillars of sustainability: Social, Economic, Environmental,
Political and Cultural:

Feasibility: budget drives decision making, lifespan, maintenance.

Technological aspects: lighting, water features.
Visual appearance: pattern, profile, texture, color.
Practicality and Performance: acoustics, fire resistance, humidity resistance,
durability.
Climate: weather control by shading, increasing humidity.
Site considerations: typography, special features.
Culture: privacy, religion, believes, history.
Function.
Laws and regulations.
Special applications and needs: unusually demanding functional requirements.

FUNCTIONAL AND COMPOSITION

USES OF PAVEMENT

1. Accommodate intense use:

Can take heavy traffic because of its durability

Accommodates handicapped and other wheeled vehicles

Can be used in all weather

2. Provide direction
strongly noticed on a vegetation background

2. Provide direction
Ribbon should be logical path of movement

2. Provide direction
If it too complex, angular people take short
cut

3. Suggests rate and rhythm of movement

by the width of the path

3. Suggests rate and rhythm of movement

By the treatment of pavement

Material
Size
Spacing

4. Create repose:
A stop created by a non-directional pavement.

5. Indicate uses in the ground plane

5. Indicate uses in the ground plane

Emphasize

the change of function

6. Influence scale

6. Influence scale
From smallest to largest contributor!
Through

texture of material
Size of individual blocks
Size and spacing of paving patterns
Large pattern gives large scale and vise versa.

7. Provide unity
As strong pattern on the ground it unifies all
elements creating a strong whole.

8. Serve as a setting or a background

Background for other more important elements in the landscape.
Pattern should be simple and quite, no coarse texture

9. Provide visual interest:

Catch

and please the eye.

Pavement

is the first thing

noticed underfoot.

Potential

windows.

view for upper floor

Blue Carpet Project in New Castle, By Thomas Heatherwick

10. Establish spatial character

Brick: warm inviting feeling to a space

10. Establish spatial character

Angled flagstone: irregular, informal atmosphere

10. Establish spatial character

Concrete & asphalt: cold, impersonal

DESIGN GUIDELINES FOR

PAVEMENT

Design guidelines for pavement

Number of materials & patterns should be limited to avoid
disorder & chaos

Design guidelines for pavement

One pavement material should dominant unity & recall.

Design guidelines for pavement

Pavement lines, expansion joints to be studied with the edge of building
around the space to establish unity.

Design guidelines for pavement

pavement pattern & selection of material should be during the design stage

Pavement should relate to all objects on site to establish on order

Design guidelines for pavement

Pavement should be studied
in perspective to help
emphasize a particular
image.

Lines parallel to line of

sight came to one point
with distance linear
feeling

Lines perpendicular to line

of sight come close to
each other bringing the
perspective closer.

Design guidelines for pavement

Pavement material should be appropriate

for:
Intend use
Expected density of use
Spatial character

Examples:
Smooth materials are better for wheelers, Loose materials
are not convenient for wheels

Examples:
Concrete can land it self easily to free-from shapes.

Examples:
Some materials are informal such as gravel, fieldstone,
some materials are formal such as marble.

Design guidelines for pavement

Materials can be changed from one area to another for a purpose: function,
ownership

When changing materials consider the following:

Change of materials should be with change in level some people think

Or third material can provide transition as a visually neutral material.

Conclusion
Pavement is an important element in Landscape Architecture
The design of pavement is influenced by the five pillars of
sustainability
There are many useful uses for Pavements including but not limited
to: creating a sense of direction, influencing scale, providing unity,
establishing spacial character etc.
There are design guidelines for the use of pavement in Landscape
Architecture projects.