Linear Cities as an Alternative for the Sustainable Transition of Urban Areas in Harmony with Natural Environment Principles

Intensive urbanization influences the quality of urban green areas, pollution, shrinking of forests, intensification of erosion as well as the fragmentation of habitats and loss of biodiversity. Despite the important role of urban ecosystems, they are exposed to the increasing destruction of the ever-expanding city. The decentralization of the compact city and balanced development, in harmony with natural environment principles, is beginning to shape city-regions. The transport system is one of the main development-stimulating factors which is beneficial to the society and contributes to the economic and cultural activation of urbanized regions. The simplicity of the linear system, based on a transport network, is expressed in its functionality—the separation of collision-free, pedestrian traffic from roads, and easy access to industrial, service, residential and recreation centers. The paper examines studies and contemporary practices of linear urban systems, based on the backbone of road network, in response to the need to find a model solution for an increasing demand for new residential, industrial, and recreational green areas, and attempts to define the role of the linear settlement system in the transition of spatial connections networks.