The Western Province Megapolis: A Project Without Clear Directions Or Objectives
By DNR Samaranayaka –March 20, 2016
DNR Samaranayaka
An urban development plan for the Western Province of Sri Lanka is being undertaken by the newly established Western Province Megapolisdepartment. It is designed according to the features and characteristics of a Megapolis with the Colombo metropolitan region as the core of the Megalopolis. The area under this project is stretching in the shape of a neckless from Negombo in the North and Hikkaduwa in the south, and extending to about 30 kilometres to the east from the core area of the project. This project is a modified and enlarged version of the plan prepared by a group of Singaporean consultants under the Western Province Megapolis Structure plan in 2004, which is also known as the ‘CESMA’ plan.
A Megapolis is normally referred to a contiguous urban corridor covering a large urban space. It usually evolves overtime through expansion and amalgamation of individual metropolitan regions. One of the key features that facilitate the formation of a Megapolis is the strict application of planning regulations, and the orderly distribution of urban space among economic, social, recreational, business, residential, administrative and other urban activities. A Megapolis also has a fair distribution of original landscape, including open spaces, water bodies, streams and forest reservations. The urban centres within the Megapolis are connected with very efficient and fast transport systems, employing the ‘state of art’ or ‘smart’ technology, which is the highest level of technology that exists at any particular time. This technology is also applied to all types of functions and services found within a Megapolis to make such services more efficient, less costly and easy to use.
