Urban Design in #CitiesSkylines? Always! Urban Design and Transport (Integrated Planning) Evolving? I Hope So

Let’s see what I have been designing for San Layton City

Since Cities Skylines came out in 2015 I have been honing in my Urban Geography and Urban Design skills. That is trying out different spatial developments, different urban design techniques and most of all working the transport system in so your City does not lock up.

As a side note this is why I am using roundabouts more in my newer Cities as they do a better job in keeping traffic moving.

Below are two sets of slide shows both covering the City Centre and Garnet Hills. The first will be of Bus Line 16 doing its trip from City Centre to the Garnet Hills subdivision via a stop outside the newly opened San Layton Nature Reserve. The second is of aerial shots of a new extension of the City Centre and Garnet Hills itself.

One of my favourite editions to the game are the Pedestrian Mall and Shared Path assets. The Pedestrian Mall says as it does – a mall for pedestrians although it does not stop emergency service and service vehicles from using it. On a rare occasion a bus might traverse the mall but the speed limit is reduced to 20km/h. The Shared Path allows all traffic on it at a reduced speed of 20km/h and is good for when commercial is in the area and you need the goods trucks to come through. At the moment Urbanist (the creator of the Shared Path asset) only has the one-way shared path with parking available but more variations are coming.

Without further-ado let’s get the show on the road:

Bus Line 16 and some wet weather

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Some aerials of Garnet Hills and the City Centre (AND first look from the Nature Reserve):

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Finally where San Layton City is at as of 31 May 2018:

Next up – a rocket launch!

#CitiesSkylines Park Life is Out and I am Having an Absolute Blast. Also Urban Geography and Green Utility Skills Tested

DLC handles well with a few minor bugs

Well one of those bugs is pretty major if I can not place down the International Airport in your map.

Anyway yesterday the Cities Skylines Park Life DLC came out so I decided to give it a whirl – once the crucial Mods were updated. I didn’t have to wait long as by mid-day the Mods were updated and away I went for the rest of the day.

First a quick prelude in Park Life from Paradox:

Cities: Skylines – Parklife is NOW AVAILABLE!

25 MAY – THELETTERZ

More Play, Less Stress – Parklife is Available Now for Cities: SkylinesCities: Skylines now offers vibrant new parks, playgrounds, zoos, green spaces and more importantly, new ways to play. With a new park area tool, five new maps, a ton of new assets and level-up features that increase your park’s property values, Parklife is will spruce up any city in a snap.

Or why not take a 360 degree tour and look around?

Cities is also getting a new radio station today: Country Road Radio, with 16 new songs from Appalachian Folk, Bluegrass/Honky Tonk, Nashville Modern Country and Unplugged country.

In addition to the paid expansion, Cities: Skylines will also get a free PC update, as usual, including a new tourism panel, trees that reduce noise pollution, a camera mode upgrade, new tourist models, and new modding features, including submeshmodding and an improved camera system so users can control the camera with scripts.

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Source: Steam

So what did I get up to?

Well the normal Urban Geography game play of building and tweaking continues as always. A new major suburb known as Kent Square was opened up in one of San Layton’s bays connecting the City Centre and Centre Park to the historic area of the City.

That said the Satellite method (establish a Core connected by multiple urban satellites) is being tried in San Latyon City and should be easier to do with Nature Reserves (part of the new DLC) being able to be established in between urban areas.

As of today San Layton City has two “City Parks” and one Amusement Park. The first Nature Reserve and a Zoo are in the planning pipeline for when I next load the game.

Park Life

Some early photos of Park Life in action:

The initial look around

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Building our first “City Park”

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All Aboard the sight seeing bus linking the Amusement Park with Centre Park (Convention Centre, Casino, Sky Tower and Monorail hub)

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Some quick broad shots

And now for the tram between Centre Park and the historic area:

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Finally some shots from a hot air balloon and other random shots:

I will get the Nature Reserve and Zoo built next week and test the Green Utility out further as the City continues to expand.

#CitiesSkylines New Expansion Out Next Month: PARKS – Lots and Lots of PARKS

No not car parks

Paradox and Colossal Order have announced a new DLC coming out for their vaunted hit – Cities Skylines

From Paradox via STEAM:

We’re thrilled to announce Parklife, our next expansion for Cities: Skylines!

19 APRIL – THELETTERZ

We’re pleased to announce that Cities: Skylines will be getting a playful new expansion, Parklife. Parklife is a lively new add-on for the PC version of Paradox Interactive and Colossal Order’s hit city-builder. The expansion will make your city more vibrant than ever with new amusement parks and zoos; nature reserves and city parks, giving new life to your empty land with custom green spaces.

Parklife adds new ways to play with everything from roller coasters and campsites to flower beds, fountains and flamingos. There’s also a new park area tool, five new maps, a ton of new assets and level-up features that increase your park’s property values in play.

More leisurely features:
• Parks and Recreation: Use the new park area tool to create park districts wherever there is empty land, and new city services like Park Maintenance, which boosts happiness and effectiveness, and helps level up parks.

• Brick by Brick: Customize your city with new buildings and assets, including a new sightseeing bus line, new service buildings, fresh attractions like amusement parks, nature reserves, city parks and zoos. There’s also a regal new monument, the Castle of Lord Chirpwick.

• Freeway Free for All: For the first time in Cities: Skylines, you can place buildings next to paths in the park districts (not just next to roads). Props can be placed anywhere inside park areas.

• Recesses Between Buildings: Transform those empty spaces between your buildings into vibrant parks and gardens.

• It’s a Walk in the Park: Customize routes and set ticket prices for new walking and sightseeing tours, among other tourism enhancements.

• Policies, Please: Take on three new city policies and eight new park policies to deal with recreational hazards like Fireworks and Animal Ethics.

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Source: https://steamcommunity.com/games/255710/announcements/detail/3339858483831123709

This will be great for my latest city San Layton City as I try new Urban Geography techniques including large park spaces and the use of those paths – that currently I can not build beside – yet!

I was also thinking last week that my City is missing a theme park like my flagship city had in Sim City 4 (it spanned half a map tile in the region).

As a result I will put my City on hold so I can make maximum use of the new DLC – when it comes out May 25 – the day after my Birthday

Thanks Paradox and Colossal Order!