This talk poses the question of how visitors experience Urban Underground Spaces (UUS) across perceived, objective, and embodied dimensions. More specifically, what spatial typologies elicit disorientation, cognitive load, stress, or shifts in gaze behavior, and how do visitors adapt their navigation strategies and use visual cues such as signage and landmarks?
These questions are increasingly important in a world where urbanization continues at a rapid pace, resulting in hyper-dense cities marked by congestion, land scarcity, and rising costs. In this context, UUS are expanding as a strategy to provide additional public space, connectivity, and shelter. However, their separation from the surface and disoriented morphology often produces negative perceptions, making it essential to evaluate their impact on human experience objectively. A multidimensional method was applied to answer these questions, combining spatial-temporal tracking, self-reports, and embodied monitoring using an Electrodermal Activity (EDA) sensor and Eye-tracking glasses. Data was gathered from 84 participants who performed navigation tasks while wearing physiological sensors and a GPS device.
Toronto’s PATH, one of the world’s largest underground pedestrian networks, notable for its high traffic and structural complexity, served as a case study. Anticipated outcomes indicate different spatial patterns: intersections will likely produce scanning, indecision, and confusion, whereas hallways or corridors will facilitate rapid forward movement and minimal visual attention. Decision points and crowded areas will probably elicit the most physiological arousal and visual signage use. Outcomes will assist in cognitive understanding of morphologies of UUS, environmental cues, wayfinding, affect, and well-being, and support future UUS design and planning.
About the speaker
Dr. Rotem Mashkov is a Postdoctoral Fellow in Geography and Planning at the University of Toronto and an urban planner. Her research explores how people perceive, navigate, and respond to urban environments, including congested spaces, underground networks, and heritage sites. Using GPS, eye-tracking, and physiological sensors, she links urban morphology with embodied experience to promote human-centered urban design that enhances accessibility, liveability, and cognitive well-being.
