Danmarksplass : förslag till ett stadsrum

Abstract: Danmarksplass is situated just outside the centre of the city of Bergen on the Norwegian west coast. It was built in the 1930´s as a result of an architecture competition won by the prominent Norwegian architect Ole Landmark. Danmarksplass was originally meant to function as a local square, but its location next to Fjösangerveien, a road that caters for most of the through traffic in the Bergen valley today and is part of one of the main European roads, E39, would prove it difficult for that idea to prevail. Along with the ever increasing car traffic, Danmarksplass has more and more become a very busy traffic junction. Nowadays the car is the sole ruler of Danmarksplass. At the same time, the area around Danmarksplass is also bustling with people. Its central location – less than a 20 minute walk from the city centre – attracts a high concentration of housing and workplaces. However, the volume of cars is equally high, with around 60 000 cars passing each day. Due to this Danmarksplass suffers from poor air quality, a lack of attractive public spaces, inhospitable pedestrian- and cycle lanes and less than ideal conditions for commerce. My aim in this paper is to present an alternative design for Danmarksplass. The paper consists of four parts. The first part is an historic description of Danmarksplass and its surroundings, followed by an analysis of the current situation and future threats and opportunities. The second part contains two case studies, meant to work as a source of inspiration for the coming design proposal. The projects chosen for these studies are Prags Boulevard in Copenhagen, Denmark and Skvallertorget in Norrköping, Sweden. Part three is the design proposal for Danmarksplass. Finally, in the closing chapter I will reflect upon the work carried out in this paper.