Jointly developed by Chengdu High-tech Zone and AECOM, Chengdu International Innovation Riverside City incorporates the latest concepts in smart cities where the newest generation of information technology is applied to take advantage of the geography’s unique natural characters.

Adhering to the people-oriented planning principle, the project team prepared a plan that generated a sustainable, economically-competitive innovation center that foster a high-quality living environment.

Located in the urban-rural junction of West Chengdu where three major rivers collate, the Riverside City is a 74-square-km (18,285 acres) area that are homes to many top academic institutions, manufactures, R&D centers, as well as high-tech companies including Huawei, Foxconn, and Lenovo. To attract international calibers, an innovation ecosystem strategy was prepared supported by “education-talent ties” based on the local development policy of “One School One Zone”, helping R&D enterprises to better utilize the scientific research capability and education from UESTC (University of Electronic Science and Technology of China) to allow for the future development of a regional electronics industry.

The newly designed city layout accompanying roads and transport system with landscaped avenues and parks with unique characters makes visiting the waterfront space in the City much more convenient and enjoyable. The improvements in transportation networks also included a new tram line that connects the university campus to off-campus facilities that further helped to create an integrated community for the people in the City to enjoy working and living in the area.

Fundamentally, Chengdu’s water system was remodeled to make it more harmonious with the urban space, presenting a marvelous layout of well-designed open space and well-spaced buildings. Strategically, both the buildings and the public space are oriented to the waterfront space to maximize the effect of the water system. Furthermore, the design emphasized the importance of adapting to urban climate and combined the traditional corridor space with the building to provide people with a more comfortable gray space.

The comprehensive “Smart City Framework” provided the flexibility to allow for future smart infrastructure and various smart technologies to continuously improve the quality of life the City could provide.

LOCATIONS
Chengdu, Sichuan, China

CLIENT
City of Chengdu

ROLE
Technical advisement as part of AECOM team

AWARD
Technology Smart City Project Award, American Planning Association, 2018