The Predictability of Humans in Public Spaces

Jan Gehl sits down with Greg Linsday to talk about his new book, Cities for People, if Phoenix could take lessons from New York, and "the needs of the urban habitat of homo sapiens."

1 minute read

September 26, 2010, 1:00 PM PDT

By Tim Halbur


Gehl talks about his practice of studying the behaviors of people in public spaces:

"...we've learned a lot about what works and doesn't work. It's partly a cultural question and partly it's a matter of biology and what kind of animal we are--how far we can move, and see. Why is it that shops are four or five meters apart on all the good shopping streets all over the world? Because if you're walking past, there is a new experience every four or five seconds, which is ideal from a stimulus point of view."

Thursday, September 16, 2010 in Fast Company

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