Covid-19 has changed the pattern of life. Social life in the form of gathering and meeting face-to-face must be abandoned because the virus is transmitted through oral fluids when talking. Urban life that was once bustling has become quiet. So what about the sustainability of compact cities that rely on density for their development? Should the implementation and development of compact cities also be avoided?
1.Why do dense areas not necessarily become vulnerable to Covid-19?
Many high-density cities such as Tokyo, Hong Kong, Taipei and Singapore actually have a lower number of cases than other cities. What these compact cities have in common is an organized density and excellent health facilities. One of them is with a high level of tracing ability so that cases can be localized and not spread further.
2.If not density, then what makes pandemics more vulnerable in big cities?
From a health perspective, the first defense against the spread of the virus is tracing and quarantining those who have been affected. However, from a spatial perspective, the main problem is overcrowded areas with highconcentrated poverty. This problem is found in many slum areas in Jakarta.
Density relates to the number of dwellings in the total floor area. Overcrowding, on the other hand, is when there are too many people in a dwelling. These two are often conflated by urban activists. (extracted from Jane Jacobs ' statement on land density and overcrowding).
Most of these overcrowded areas are also where concentrated poverty is. There, most residents are low-income withovercrowded houses. Thus, physical distancing is difficult to implement, there is no public space or communal green space and sanitation is often not maintained. These conditions are illustrated in many slum areas in various parts of Jakarta.
Not only are slum areas in Jakarta more vulnerable, the pandemic is also more vulnerable in overcrowded areas in Singapore. There, the spread of Covid-19 is more prone to occur in dormitories for migrant workers where more than 10 people live in one room.
3.How can the pandemic in areas with high concentrated poverty be minimized?
For the case of Covid-19, tracing and self-contained is the best solution. However, for health issues and pandemics in general, there are urban planning approaches that can be taken to reduce the ongoing negative impacts of urban sprawl overcrowding in Jakarta.
There is some spatial and social engineering that can be done to improve public health. One of them is increasing building density with vertical buildings, or implementing compact city development that promotes vertical growth, so that overcrowded houses can be avoided. The application of the compact city concept can certainly increase land use effectively, helping to overcome the slum problem in Jakarta.
In addition, implementingmixed-income housing is also a solution that can be taken. When low-income people live in a mixed income neighborhood, their quality of life also improves. People who live in mixed income neighborhoods also have higher bargaining power when demanding health facilities and improved environmental sanitation.