PROJECTS

Grand Mosque Pedestrian Model

Vertix Asia-Pacific Pte Ltd (Vertix) conducted a study on a large, new mosque in a confidential location. The mosque will be the largest in the region and was designed to hold 30,000 worshippers on a weekly basis. The objective of the pedestrian modelling was to validate the design of the mosque and its facilities, and to optimize the architectural design of the spaces. The evaluation included analysis of arrival patterns at the mosque, a desktop study of the process points in the mosque, and validation of the design using pedestrian modelling.    

Project Description

A government effort is being made to implement a large mosque to accommodate 30,000 worshippers in this large city in Asia. The mosque will sit within the centre of the city and will be attended by up to 27,000 men and 3,000 women simultaneously. Worshippers will arrive at the mosque via public transportation, car, and by foot.

The main objective of the study to assist the architect in developing a functional design to accommodate the various process spaces within the mosque, such as ablutions, cloak rooms, and shoe/clothing storage.

Our Services

Vertix first analysed arrival patterns at the mosque and developed a profile of visitors over the build up and dispersal periods around the call to prayer. We then evaluated the spatial provisions of all the process areas. Finally we built a pedestrian model to validate the design. Our findings included:

• Process area size – processes such as ablutions and cloak rooms were expanded to cater to demand. The architect added various process points to accommodate the target user number of 30,000
• Corridor Widths were Inadequate – Accommodating the anticipated demand required larger corridors at key pinch points in the design. Corridors and doorways needed to be delicately sized to permit passage without exceeding the capacity of the downstream areas and process points
• Transport vs Demand – the proposed transport facilities restricted the flow into the mosque, enabling us to determine the time required for the mosque to fill up during prayer time

Outcomes

The project had significant impacts to the final design, with more capacity added in key places. The final design could cater for the targeted demand in the worst-case conditions in accordance with the client’s requirements.