Reclaiming Fragmented Urbanism in Dhaka, Bangladesh: A Data-Driven Evaluation of Infrastructural Voids and Strategic Pathways for Redesign

Rapid urbanisation in Dhaka has created extensive infrastructure gaps. Residual spaces produced by large-scale transport infrastructure and neglected waterway corridors remain formally unacknowledged yet functionally embedded in the city’s informal social fabric. Despite their apparent emptiness, these sites serve as critical nodes of everyday urban life for marginalised communities. This paper evaluates the spatial conditions, ecological degradation, and latent social value of four recurring void typologies in Dhaka: street nodes adjacent to canal edges, land beneath flyovers under construction, voids beneath existing flyovers with informal sanitation facilities, and waste-accumulating plots along waterway margins.

A standardised field data-collection framework was employed across all four site typologies, documenting physical and environmental conditions, as well as the demographic profiles and behavioural patterns of current users. Observational mapping, structured surveys, and spatial measurements were used to capture both the formal neglect and the informal vitality characterising each site.

Field evidence demonstrates that all four typologies sustain consistent, high-frequency informal activities, including vending, transit waiting, waste sorting, and community gathering, despite the absence of any planned programming or basic amenities. Regardless of the unfavourable environmental conditions, including poor drainage, heat exposure, inadequate sanitation, and existing social vulnerabilities, the users are most dependent on these spaces on a daily basis.

The findings indicate that Dhaka’s infrastructural voids represent a systemic planning failure that disproportionately affects low-income and transient populations. Targeted, community-responsive redesign strategies informed directly by documented behavioural patterns can transform these neglected sites into equitable public assets. This research contributes an evidence-based framework for integrating infrastructural and ecological voids into Dhaka’s broader urban fabric, advancing more inclusive and resilient city-making.