Post construction infrastructural adaptation of social practices in Dhaka’s under flyover spaces

Abstract

Transportation infrastructures often impose a rigid and controlled formation over the organic dynamism of urban areas. This blend of infrastructure and urban context redefines transportation systems beyond their purely functional roles, creating opportunities for new land uses, social interactions in the spaces beneath them. The management and adaptation of these urban void spaces under elevated infrastructure can become either assets or liabilities, particularly under the unique conditions prevalent in the Global South Megacities. Using participatory action research datasets and zoning models, this study explores the spatial relationships between physical infrastructure and its contextually accommodating opportunities. This article highlights how the squatter community under the Tejgaon-Nabisco Flyover in Dhaka, Bangladesh, autonomously organizes and utilizes these spaces, fostering adaptive place-making and developing local economic practices supported by the flyover’s structural elements.