Design Idea: Small Parks as pedestrian-only shortcuts

[me22ca]

To try to encourage walking and keep the cars to the main streets, I've been separating sections with Small Parks, aligned so the path through the middle ends up being a continuation of the sidewalk:
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2016793381
I've been having good luck with this, so wanted to share and see if anyone had good ideas to improve it. Other than the uglier trees, it's also made a nice buffer between industry and residential. And they're so cheap (only ₡8 upkeep -- just building an 8u gravel path instead would be almost ₡2 in upkeep) that I can spam 6 of them where I might have otherwise had one Bouncy Castle, for better overall entertainment.

It chains well, too -- pedestrians get a nice path through the middle of the neighbourhoods while cars need to go off to the side:
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2016793444

[Priest]

Park (fun)
Park (parking lot)
Path between 2 Streets
Path (overwalk)
And finally you can consider a taxi or Bus stop

at least that my experience what yopu can do withn such "Parks"

[OneJasonBradly]

Good topic!!
Pathways and parks with paths can be very powerful.
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=1875904948
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=1891544910
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=1276346177
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=1852286534
Can you see the pathways?
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=1109974903
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=1125883948
Here I added paths and other things to reach the large park in the distance.
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=1125868592
A wide shot of the parkway or pathway along the mining district on the residential side.
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=957640071
Though it is hard to see.
This one shows the network of paths reach from the stadium to the Oil industrial district at the top of the screenshot. It also shows the cross path that starts at the left at the large park and follows the mining industrial area in the middle of the screenshot.
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=957643801
The beginnings of this pathway along the mining area.
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=857082313
2016 The LOTUS parkway. This was the first one built, the experiment if you will.

https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=786197704

Forgive all the content, this topic I have enjoyed since buying the game back in 2015.

[me22ca]

Cool, @OneJasonBradly! You've clearly thought about this way more than I have.

I came to it from Fused Grid[fusedgrid.ca], which uses the parks as pedestrian connectors, which I found from this very old asset:
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=407203352&searchtext=vfg
Which is nice, but doesn't take full advantage of the middle park, and just the one middle park for the block isn't enough entertainment for full blue happiness.

[OneJasonBradly]

Originally posted by me22ca:

Cool, @OneJasonBradly! You've clearly thought about this way more than I have.

I came to it from Fused Grid[fusedgrid.ca], which uses the parks as pedestrian connectors, which I found from this very old asset:
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=407203352&searchtext=vfg
Which is nice, but doesn't take full advantage of the middle park, and just the one middle park for the block isn't enough entertainment for full blue happiness.

Over the years I have watched for people who notice what you have and tried to encourage them. So that I may check out their ideas too, perhaps. In my opinion Parks with paths including my fave "The Large Playground" are meant to be parts of parks and are to be or can be used in a large park setting containing many assets. I do mean without the need for ParkLife though road design is an interesting thing in these case. I almost have a rule that parks with paths do double duty like bring happiness and easier route to destinations.
Here is something that may interest you and others using paths. If a path is within one zone square of the back of any type of lot 'that has a hang out area', including benches that are used, not props, they can walk from those hang out spots to join the path.
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=1339828833
I like messing with the pathways and parks and there's a lot I could show. I'll show one more thing that may pass many by but may interest some.
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=1715595942
My profile is Public, and large and may have some ideas for you to explore.

[me22ca]

Originally posted by OneJasonBradly:

my fave "The Large Playground"

What makes that one your favourite? It's 20x the upkeep of a Small Park for only 25% more entertainment (same radius). Is there something about its paths that you particularly like? Are you making diagonals with it?

[OneJasonBradly]

Originally posted by me22ca:

Originally posted by OneJasonBradly:

my fave "The Large Playground"

What makes that one your favourite? It's 20x the upkeep of a Small Park for only 25% more entertainment (same radius). Is there something about its paths that you particularly like? Are you making diagonals with it?

It's small and can fit in many places. Radius and cost mean little to me. The entertainment of the thing is secondary to me or is a bonus after it's first job, that is a pathway.
It is the first asset I used as a pathway network connection and I became a "one trick pony" with the thing. I used it everywhere I could think of.
This clip, six minutes in explains sort of why it became my favourite. It is worth watching.
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=1276346177

[me22ca]

Ah, "It's the smallest one where the trick works" make sense.

I guess I'm just too wedded to my 8u-between-roads layouts to care about it being 9x6 instead of 9x8, so am happy to use the cheap one.

(I tried to do more interesting ones, but the way the game zones on corners that aren't 90° just gets me so annoyed...)

[Cahos Rahne Veloza]

Before "Park Life" was released along with the park paths were a thing. The "Paradox Plaza" plaza reward item you get from registeting for a Paradox account and linking your game to it was the most overpowered "Park item" in the game in terms of its happiness generation as well as range and area of effect. It still is actually that powerful, especially if you don't have the Park Life DLC and want to raise happiness and land value through the roof.

[ekoparker]

I recentlly did this in my city with a ped/bike overpass of the main freeway. The park sat between the exit ramps of that freeway.

[me22ca]

@Cahos is it really that good? The table on https://imgur.com/a/XByGU says it has the same stats as a Small Park for double the upkeep, though it's also 65% smaller.

@InterKid have a screenshot? I keep wanting to do something useful with space in the middle of an interchange, but always end up having trouble finding the right way to get to it.

[ekoparker]

@me22ca
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2019268660

[Cahos Rahne Veloza]

@ma22ca:

The fact it is smaller means it can be easier to spam.

[Priest]

but be carefull, the ground is not allways flat.
Means if you make overwalks you maybe should prefer 5 long ramps
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2016327842
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2016329263

[me22ca]

@InterKid Ah, interesting, kindof a split parclo to create extra space in the middle.

Thanks! I'll have to experiment with that. (Though I don't have Parklife.)

[ekoparker]

Parklife isnt necessary with that one! It's a park area for me technically but there's no main gate so no income or anything. Normal parks/props from the workshop should work and the pedestrian roads! Good luck!