Analysis of Height-to-Width Ratio of Commercial Streets with Arcades Based on Sunshine Hours and Street Orientation

Abstract

By extracting and simplifying the characteristics of commercial streets with arcades (Qilou) in Nanning, the tissue map of Qilou streets which reflects the urban morphology, including the road network form, block scale, building scale and other characteristics in a hot and humid area is obtained. In addition, the sunshine simulation is performed by using sunshine design software in an environment comprising streets with arcades to simulate street sunlight environments under various conditions. The relationship among street height-to-width ratio, sunshine hours, and street orientation angle is achieved by nonlinear fitting analysis. Then, a model is established to adjust the street height-to-width ratio based on sunshine requirement and street orientation. The finding indicated that when the street is north–south, it is suggested that the street height-to-width ratio is 0.95–1.13 to reduce sunshine hours effectively, and when the street is east–west, it is proposed that one side of the street should have a recessed space to improve the thermal conditions. The results of this study can serve as the specific guidelines that can be adopted in the redesign and reformation of commercial streets with arcades to achieve thermal comfort of Qilou streets in hot and humid areas.