Circulation is the network of paths, cart routes and water lines that lets people, loads, water and emergency help reach every part of a settlement. A settlement of 100-150 people needs primary paths 2-3 m wide between its zones, secondary paths of 1-1.5 m to each house, a separate route for carts into the workshops and stores, and a water line that reaches every zone.
Part of Settlement Layout for 150 People
Circulation is the movement system of a settlement, treated as part of the layout from the start rather than as the gaps left between buildings.
Paths Are The Circulatory System
The layout guide calls paths the circulatory system of the settlement and asks that they be designed on purpose. Three networks run together:
- People and loads on foot — primary paths join the five zones; secondary paths join each house to a primary path. See Path Network Design.
- Carts and animals — the heavy traffic from fields to stores and workshops, kept away from the plaza and the houses where practical. See Cart and Vehicle Routes.
- Water — a gravity-fed supply that reaches every zone, with a communal water point at the core. See Water Distribution Routes.
For a settlement of 100-150 people widths matter: the layout guide gives 2-3 m for primary paths and 1-1.5 m for secondary ones, which is the minimum a loaded cart or two people carrying loads needs.
A fourth network exists only in an emergency: the route for a stretcher, a fire crew with buckets, and a crowd leaving the hall. It uses the same paths, so those paths must be wide enough and free of obstruction at all times.
What You Need
- The zone plan — circulation joins zones that are already placed
- A grade survey — paths and cart roads fail on steep or wet ground (Grade Calculation)
- Drainage — a path that holds water becomes mud
Method
Step 1: Draw the primary loop from the core to each of the other four zones.
Step 2: Add secondary paths from each house or cluster to the nearest primary path.
Step 3: Check the cart route reaches the workshops and stores without crossing the plaza.
Step 4: Check the emergency route. From any house, there should be a clear way to the plaza and to the water points.
Common Mistakes
- One path for everything — carts churn the surface that children walk on.
- Dead-end lanes — no way out if one end is blocked by fire.
- Paths that follow the fall line down a slope — water runs along them and cuts gullies.
Safety
Keep paths clear
A blocked or narrowed path turns a fire or a crowd into a trap. Do not store wood, tools or carts on a primary path.
What’s Next
- Learn next: Path Network Design — widths, surfaces, drainage
- Combine with: Road Layout — surveying a route