5 ms·

Dubai is plainly not a human scale city. You need a car to get around it, walking anywhere is a complete nightmare

throwaway0a5e 4y ago
>Dubai is plainly not a human scale city. Ok and? If their median/average/<whatever> quality of life is greater that way then so what? Every ideologue latches onto buzzwords like "human scale" but forgets that the whole point of that buzzword is that the thing is represents theoretically goes hand in hand with quality of life. Look at the local climate and land situation for Dubai. It's not exactly a surprise that they prefer to just spread everything out and travel in cars. Just a 1/4mi walk from subway station to destination would be pretty uncomfortable for large parts of the year. At least in St. Petersburg you can put on a big jacket during the uncomfortable part of the year.
- Tade0 4y ago
  > Every ideologue latches onto buzzwords like "human scale" I started hating this term, because it appears to reflect a very particular lifestyle which in turn fits a very particular demographic and just assumes this is better than alternatives. One thing that I never see mentioned is how this affects availability of real estate. In my corner of the world people are generally leaving large cities, because at least half of the working population isn't eligible for a mortgage for an apartment within city limits. You can only go so far on foot or on a bicycle in a day. With a car you at least have a bargaining chip against the local real estate market.
  - zip1234 4y ago
    The problem is often that people want to live in a place that is cheap and with space and then drive to where jobs are and the pay is high (city), which means wide roads to get to city, which means lots of pollution, noise, lack of safety for those in the city. As far as real estate, there are often other reasons for the high prices. The root cause is often not just land.
albrewer 4y ago
Dubai is usually over 38 °C (100°F) for half the year, usually reaching 40°C (105°C) and once reached 49°C (121°F). Humans can't really cope with temperatures that high unless it's insanely dry out. I would argue Dubai can really only be lived in through artificial means.

>Dubai is plainly not a human scale city. Ok and? If their median/average/<whatever> quality of life is greater that way then so what? Every ideologue latches onto buzzwords like "human scale" but forgets that the whole point of that buzzword is that the thing is represents theoretically goes hand in hand with quality of life. Look at the local climate and land situation for Dubai. It's not exactly a surprise that they prefer to just spread everything out and travel in cars. Just a 1/4mi walk from subway station to destination would be pretty uncomfortable for large parts of the year. At least in St. Petersburg you can put on a big jacket during the uncomfortable part of the year.

Tade0 4y ago
> Every ideologue latches onto buzzwords like "human scale" I started hating this term, because it appears to reflect a very particular lifestyle which in turn fits a very particular demographic and just assumes this is better than alternatives. One thing that I never see mentioned is how this affects availability of real estate. In my corner of the world people are generally leaving large cities, because at least half of the working population isn't eligible for a mortgage for an apartment within city limits. You can only go so far on foot or on a bicycle in a day. With a car you at least have a bargaining chip against the local real estate market.
- zip1234 4y ago
  The problem is often that people want to live in a place that is cheap and with space and then drive to where jobs are and the pay is high (city), which means wide roads to get to city, which means lots of pollution, noise, lack of safety for those in the city. As far as real estate, there are often other reasons for the high prices. The root cause is often not just land.

albrewer 4y ago

Dubai is usually over 38 °C (100°F) for half the year, usually reaching 40°C (105°C) and once reached 49°C (121°F). Humans can't really cope with temperatures that high unless it's insanely dry out. I would argue Dubai can really only be lived in through artificial means.