The CPTED principles in physical planning in Vivalla : An analysis of how safety and security can be improved through the design of urban environments in a particularly vulnerable area in Sweden

Abstract: This study aims to investigate how physical planning can prevent crime and increase safety in an urban environment, with the theoretical starting point in Crime prevention through environmental design, CPTED, and the Vivalla area. Vivalla is located in Örebro and was chosen because it is a particularly vulnerable area. The district is under reconstruction with a completely renovated quarter, Visgatan. The questions and purpose are fulfilled through a literature study and document study supplemented with an interview and a location observation. The interview was held in place at Örebro Bostäder's office and the interviewees were the company's district manager and a project developer. The theoretical part of the report aims to provide an understanding of how safety, security and crime are connected to the physical urban environment. Also how planners can make use of different theories and apply these in practice to achieve as safe and secure an environment as possible. The results of the study show that the project did not follow any theoretical model in terms of physical design, but that several of the CPTED-principles can still be connected to the reconstruction of Vivalla. The analysis chapter describes how the principles have been implemented and to what extent. The case study leads to the conclusion that the safety on Visgatan has increased after the redevelopment and there are fewer crimes on Visgatan than the rest of Vivalla, which could potentially be due to the measures taken during the redevelopment.