Urban Development Policy Making

Urban Development Policy Making

Strategic Assessment Framework for Soft Mobility Network Development in Urban Revitalization: Insights from Pedestrian and Cycling Path Planning in District 2 of Tehran Municipality

Document Type : Original Article

Authors
Mahdi Salehi 1
Mohammad Hossein Boochani 2
Marzieh Samadi Foroushani 3
Esmaeil Ghafari 4
1 Tehran Municipality and M.Sc. in Architecture, Iran University of Science and Technology (IUST), Tehran, Iran, Tehran, Iran
2 Assistant Professor, Department of Urban Planning, Faculty of Art and Architecture, South Tehran Branch, Islamic Azad University, Tehran, Iran
3 Assistant Professor, Department of Industrial Engineering, Faculty of Industrial Engineering, University of Eyvanekey, Eyvanekey, Iran
4 Tehran Municipality and Department of Public Administration (Public Policy), Science and Research Branch, Islamic Azad University, Tehran, Iran
10.22034/judpm.2026.572668.1085
Abstract
The rapid growth of cities and the consequences of climate change, the energy crisis and dependence on private cars have highlighted the necessity of urban regeneration and the development of soft mobility infrastructure (walking and cycling). The current research aims to integrate the development strategy of the soft mobility network in the planning process of revitalization of urban spaces, while providing a strategic evaluation framework for the regeneration of urban spaces, and identifying the development strategies of the soft mobility network in the revitalization of urban space based on a systemic intervention process in the planning of the walking and cycling routes of the 2nd district of Tehran municipality. For this purpose, first by reviewing the literature and reviewing the international documents, the strategic evaluation framework of urban regeneration was developed and using the methodology of revealing and testing strange assumptions (SAST), with the participation of organizational decision makers while revealing the strategic assumptions of soft network development in urban revitalization, after dialectical discussions, the synthesis and integration of system development strategies were conducted and based on the level of importance and assurance of the correctness of the assumption of the secure planning area, it was presented. The research findings indicate that the proposed strategies have mainly focused on the physical-spatial dimensions, safety, welfare and health of users; measures such as connecting parks, constructing pedestrian and bicycle bridges, separating paths, installing safety signs and equipment, emergency and medical services, and creating service and welfare stations, and some solutions in the dimensions of social justice, institutional participation and technological innovation have also been considered. However, improving the dimensions of socio-economic resilience and evaluation frameworks based on users' perceptions of the areas that can be developed in the vitality path were identified.
Keywords
Urban space revitalization
Urban regeneration
Strategic environmental assessment Soft mobility
Pedestrianization
Cycling
Subjects
1.    Valente R, Mozingo L, Bosco R, Cappelli E, Donadio C. Environmental regeneration integrating soft mobility and green street networks: a case study in the metropolitan periphery of Naples. Sustainability. 2021 Jul 22;13(15):8195.
2.    Balsas CJ. Innovations in Non-Motorized Transportation (NMT) Knowledge Creation and Diffusion. World. 2025 Oct 1;6(4):136.
3.    Correa F, Bartorila M, Ribeiro-Palacios M, Pérez-Soto GI, Rodríguez-Reséndiz J. Toward the Human Scale in Smart Cities: Exploring the Role of Active Mobility in Ecosystemic Urbanism. Smart Cities. 2024 Dec 16;7(6):4002-24.
4.    Urrutia‐Mosquera J, Cortés Y, Flórez‐Calderón L, Lufín M. Sustainable urban development and mobility. The role of spatial heterogeneity in sustainable trip patterns. Sustainable Development. 2025 Apr;33(2):2171-88.
5.    Kuss P, Nicholas KA. A dozen effective interventions to reduce car use in European cities: Lessons learned from a meta-analysis and transition management. Case studies on transport policy. 2022 Sep 1;10(3):1494-513.
6.    Rosik P, Mazur M, Stępniak M, Komornicki T, Goliszek S, Duma P, Churski P. What drives potential accessibility decomposition? Temporal and spatial variability of the impact of infrastructure and population components in France, Spain, and Poland in the years 1960–2020. Journal of Transport and Land Use. 2025 Jan 22;18(1):1-27.
7.    Bello AO, Okanlawon TT, Wuni IY, Arogundade S, Oyewobi LO. Exploring the nexus between the barriers and drivers for sustainable smart cities in developing countries: The case of Nigeria. Sustainable Development. 2024 Aug;32(4):4097-113.
8.    Zaki SH, Haggag AG, Selim AM. Novel criteria for sustainable use of urban spaces under bridges in cities by applying DEMATEL technique. International Journal of Urban Sustainable Development. 2023 Dec 31;15(1):299-320.
9.    Mareeva VM, Ahmad AM, Ferwati MS, Garba SB. Sustainable urban regeneration of blighted neighborhoods: The case of al ghanim neighborhood, doha, qatar. Sustainability. 2022 Jun 7;14(12):6963.
10.              Zhang Y, Kang S, Koo JH. Perception difference and conflicts of stakeholders in the urban regeneration project: a case study of Nanluoguxiang. Sustainability. 2021 Mar 8;13(5):2904.
11.              Pellicelli G, Rossetti S, Caselli B, Zazzi M. Urban regeneration as an opportunity to redesign Sustainable Mobility. Experiences from the Emilia-Romagna Regional Call. Transportation Research Procedia. 2022 Jan 1;60:576-83.
12.              Gattuso D, Cassone GC, Malara M. Integrated urban regeneration policy and soft mobility planning for transport energysaving. Instrumentation Mesure Métrologie. 2018;18(4):527-47.
13.              United Nations Human Settlements Programme. New Urban Agenda, Illustrated. 2020.
14.              Von der Leyen U. Political Guidelines for the Next European Commission 2019-2024: Opening Statement in the European Parliament Plenary Session 16 July 2019. Speech in the European Parliament Plenary Session 27 November 2019. Publications Office of the European Union; 2020.
15.              UN-Habitat; World Health Organization. Integrating health in urban and territorial planning: A source book. (2020. https://unhabitat.org/sites/default/files/2020/05/1-final_highres_20002_integrating_health_in_urban_and_territorial_planning_a_sourcebook.pdf
16.              Urban regeneration as a tool for inclusive and sustainable recovery. Report on the Expert Group Meeting: 2021. Hybrid event co-hosted by UN-Habitat and the Basque Country Government in Bilbao, Basque Country, Spain.
17.              Di Ruocco I, D’Auria A, D’Alterio RR, De Rosa A. A Framework for a User-Perception-Based Approach to Integrate Landscape Protection in Soft Mobility Planning. Land. 2023 May 11;12(5):1048.
18.              Kantarek AA, Hanzl M, Figlus T, Musiaka Ł, Zaguła A. Introduction. Urban Redevelopment and Revitalisation. A Multidisciplinary Perspective. InInternational Seminar on Urban Form 2022 Sep 6 (pp. 1-6). Cham: Springer Nature Switzerland.
19.              Massari A, Marchionni C. Sustainable Regeneration of Urban Centers: Strategic Guidelines of Intervention. In2025 IEEE International Workshop on Metrology for Living Environment (MetroLivEnv) 2025 Jun 11 (pp. 138-143). IEEE.
20.              Tehran City Islamic Council. Fourth Plan for the Development and Progress of Tehran City Based on the Realization of Urban Justice 1401-1404. 1401. approved on 16/12/1401. https://laws.tehran.ir/Law/TreeText/7357
21.              Paganelli, F. Urban Mobility and Transportation. In: Leal Filho, W., Azeiteiro, U., Azul, A., Brandli, L., Özuyar, P., Wall, T. (eds) Sustainable Cities and Communities. Encyclopedia of the UN Sustainable Development Goals. Springer, Cham. 2019. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-71061-7_67-1
22.              İnce EC. Mapping the path to sustainable urban mobility: a bibliometric analysis of global trends and innovations in transportation research. Sustainability. 2025 Feb 11;17(4):1480.
23.              Un-Habitat. 2022. https://unhabitat.org/sites/default/files/2022/05/report_egm_urban_regeneration.pdf
24.              Lak A, Ramezani M, Aghamolaei R. Reviving the lost spaces under urban highways and bridges: an empirical study. Journal of Place Management and Development. 2019 Sep 27;12(4):469-84.
25.              Baltic IK. The Public Urban Spaces Renewal and Architectural Heritage Revitalization: A Lasting Interconnection. InConservation of Urban and Architectural Heritage-Past, Present and Future 2023 Jul 24. IntechOpen.
26.              Vakhnichenko, O. Revitalization of urban public spaces. In AIP Conference Proceedings (Vol. 2490, No. 1, p. 060029). 2023. AIP Publishing LLC.
27.              Alberti F. Regenerative streets: Pathways towards the post-automobile city. Sustainability. 2023 Jun 28;15(13):10266.
28.              Ricciardelli A, Amoruso P, Di Liddo F. Urban Regeneration: From Design to Social Innovation—Does Organizational Aesthetics Matter? Urban Science. 2025 Mar 11;9(3):79.
29.              Bruno M. The challenge of the bicycle street: Applying collaborative governance processes while protecting user centered innovations. Transportation research interdisciplinary perspectives. 2020 Sep 1; 7:100209.
30.              Corticelli R, Pazzini M, Mazzoli C, Lantieri C, Ferrante A, Vignali V. Urban regeneration and soft mobility: The case study of the Rimini canal port in Italy. Sustainability. 2022 Nov 4;14(21):14529.
31.              De Lotto R, Greco A, Moretti M, Pietra C, Venco EM. Collaborative soft mobility planning for university cities: The case of Pavia. Transportation Research Procedia. 2022 Jan 1;60:472-9.
32.              Moro A. Co-design of public spaces for pedestrian use and soft-mobility in the perspective of communities reappropriation and activation. Transportation research procedia. 2022 Jan 1;60:36-43.
33.              Ferrari G, Tan Y, Diana P, Palazzo M. The platformisation of cycling—The development of bicycle-sharing systems in China: Innovation, Urban and Social regeneration and sustainability. Sustainability. 2024 Jun 12;16(12):5011.
34.              Adesina JA, Tang X, Uduma-Olugu N, Adebamowo M. Regenerating Urban Landscapes through Wetlands Restoration and Outdoor Open Space Connectivity: Off-road Bicycle Lane Planning Principles for Tourism Development. Turismo: Visão e Ação. 2025 Feb 24;27:e20521.
35.              Chen B. Streetscape Regeneration Based on the Walking-friendly Research¿¿ An Example of Lijiao Urban Village Design (Doctoral dissertation, Politecnico di Torino).
36.              Della Spina L. Co-Evaluating Landscape as a Driver for Territorial Regeneration: The Industrial Archaeology of the Noto–Pachino Railway (Italy). Land. 2025 Oct 24;14(11):2116.
37.              Masys AJ. Applications of systems thinking and soft operations research in managing complexity. Boston. USA. 2015;321.
38.              Jackson MC. Critical systems thinking and the management of complexity. John Wiley & Sons; 2019 Apr 8.
39.              UN-Habitat. 2020. 2012-2025 United Nations Human Settlements Programme, Global Urban Safety Indicators and Monitoring Tool https://unhabitat.org/global-urban-safety-indicators-and-monitoring-tool
40.              Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), 2020, Smart Cities and Inclusive Growth. https://www.oecd.org/content/dam/oecd/en/publications/reports/2020/08/smart-cities-and-inclusive-growth_332850c0/8a4ce475-en.pdf
41.              Coşkun E, Rittersberger-Tılıç H. Crossborder Marriages as a Path to “Upward” Social Mobility: The case of Kyrgyz Women in Türkiye. InWomen's Studies International Forum 2024 Jul 1 (Vol. 105, p. 102949). Pergamon.
42.              Dindar E. Performance Evaluation of Economic, Environmental, and Social Sustainability and GRI-Based SDG Disclosures in Turkey’s Automotive Sector. Sustainability. 2025 Oct 7;17(19):8905.
43.              Millard-Ball A, Reginald M, Yusuf Y, Bian C, Ng W. Beyond Copenhagen: Walking & cycling success stories from cities worldwide.
44.              WHO. Examples of applications of the Health Economic Assessment Tool for cycling and walking, .2025. https://www.who.int/europe/publications/m/item/examples-of-applications-of-the-health-economic-assessment-tool-for-cycling-and-walking 
45.              World Bank. Global Mobility Report: Tracking Sector Performance. 2017.
46.              Navarro-Moreno J, Calvo-Poyo F, de Oña J. Investment in roads and traffic safety: linked to economic development? A European comparison. Environmental Science and Pollution Research. 2023 Jan;30(3):6275-97.
47.              UN-HABITAT. Healthier Cities and Communities Through Public Spaces. 2025, https://unhabitat.org/sites/default/files/2025/01/final_public_space_and_urban_health.pdf
48.              UN-Habitat. 2012-2025 United Nations Human Settlements Programme. 2020. https://unhabitat.org/programme/safer-cities
49.              UN-Habitat, World Smart Cities Outlook. 2024. https://unhabitat.org/sites/default/files/2024/12/un_smart_city_outlook.pdf
50.              Rui J, Othengrafen F. Examining the role of innovative streets in enhancing urban mobility and livability for sustainable urban transition: A review. Sustainability. 2023 Mar 24;15(7):5709.
Urban Development Policy Making
Volume 3, Issue 2
Summer 2026
Pages 213-232

  • Receive Date 28 November 2025
  • Revise Date 29 December 2025
  • Accept Date 27 February 2026
  • Publish Date 01 June 2026