Turin Mapping

By Andrea Boschetti, Federico Parolotto - 4 April 2017

With 2 million plus inhabitants in the metropolitan area, Turin is one of Italy’s long-standing urban landmarks. Modern, inclusive and open, it has always been synonymous with productivity, especially but not exclusively because the FIAT automobile company was born and developed here, becoming a prime mover in the city’s physical and cultural development. In fact, over and above its close historical ties with its surrounding area, Turin was for years the symbol of the industrious city, taking in thousands of immigrants from all over Italy, providing them with work and especially with housing. Like Dubai, the city examined in the previous issue, we look at Turin with the aid of six maps. As well as the population density map, a new worker distribution map has now been added, an important feature in cities structured around industrial activities. Comparison of these two maps with the other four - showing the natural gradients, service provision, public transport and natural vegetation - gives a clear picture of Turin and how it functions. The population map shows how the river Po and the hills to the east form a natural boundary. As a result, the city has expanded in hub-and-spoke fashion towards the north, south and west, in this latter direction along the slopes and valleys leading into the Alps. Immediately apparent is Corso Francia, an 11.5 km axis built in 1711 to connect the royal Rivoli castle with Piazza Statuto in the heart of the city. This avenue is the only exception to a prevalently orthogonal city layout that follows the course of the Po. Also evidenced by the population map is how the residential areas are largely contained between the outer ring road and the river. Lastly, the historic city center is characterized - like many other mature western cities - by low population density. The worker density map, in contrast, shows highest concentrations in the downtown area, highlighting the tertiary nature of the city center. Other worker...