Uploaded on 2015-06-04 by shanivanbel

[1]: https://edxuploads.s3.amazonaws.com/14334512877117667.jpg Transport Infrastructure has impacted the city of Blois (centre region of France). The city is built on the edge of the Loire river. It was famously called 'the amphitheater on the Loire' as the graduating hills create higher landscapes the further away you are from the river. In the past the river was a method of transport for resources and people, and not a beautiful promenade as it is today. There was even a wall protecting inhabitants of the city from diseases originating from the river. The city centre is, consequently a long strip that follows the river, as opposed to your traditional circle form. Today the north and south of the river are linked by a bridge making a city that spans both sides of the river. The roads and bridges are important design elements of the city structure. They affect how traffic enters the city and how the city is seen from far away. They also define the main roads of the city. There are three bridges which create the main axes of traffic. With the advances of technology and increased use of computers for work and study, traffic in future cities should be reduced as people will work more often from home. This will create a car free city centre with only bikes and trams circulating. Due to the steep landscape there are many winding roads that create elipse shaped spaces and public gardens in the city centre. 27 KMs up the river there is a nuclear power station. It provides 77% of the power needed for the surrounding cities. The proximity to the river is a necessity for cooling the vapour. Electricity and wifi access is a hot topic at present. After 9 months of road works, demolition of pavements and drilling, there is a new underground system in place for electricity and public high speed wifi access. There are no cables in the centre. All this at a huge cost. Is there no system where we could easily access the underground cables without causing traffic jams and discomfort to citizens during the road works? The hospital is at the top of the hill with a main road leading to it. The cathedral, town hall and castle are also on the hill. This creates a beautiful panorama of old buildings. One almost forgets that 60% of the inhabitants in the city live in high rise social housing. As charming as the city centre is, it is a facade for tourists, and hides the grim reality of the grey concrete blocks in the north of the city. In these areas there are few green spaces and the atmosphere is completely different to that of the old city. What went wrong in the last century of construction?