Identifying Visual Quality of Rural Road Landscape Character by Using Public Preference and Heatmap Analysis in Sabak Bernam, Malaysia

Abstract

The rural road landscape is crucial in forming rural areas’ landscape character (LC). As a platform for portraying the rural landscape, the rural roads demonstrate the area’s unique natural and cultural characteristics to visitors. However, with the continuous development of rural areas, the rural LC has been severely impacted, thus impacting visitors’ visual experience. In order to preserve and protect the rural landscape, this study aims to assess the visual quality of rural road landscapes based on public preference and heatmap analysis. The results indicated that most of the participants had a higher level of preference for rural landscapes with open horizontal views represented by agricultural areas, such as paddy fields. It was also found that different paddy field characters based on their planting stages can also positively affect the visual quality of rural road landscapes. The study also revealed that rural LCs with roadside settlements, commercial structures, mixed agricultural crops, and vegetation received low preference ratings. These characters negatively impact the visual quality of the rural road landscape. These findings provide significant insight for planners and decision-makers regarding protecting and preserving the essential rural road landscapes for the rural tourism experience.

How Highway Landscape Visual Qualities Are Being Studied: A Systematic Literature Review

“…Conversely, cultural landscape elements like towns, residential, and industrial areas have low visual appeal [2,3], perhaps due to inadequate environmental integration or insufficient maintenance. Such results appear consistent with rural road landscapes, landscapes with roadside settlements, and commercial structures, which are less attractive [30].…”

“…When highway landscapes pass through rural or urban areas, they provide another multifaceted perspective. For example, the highways traversing rural areas reveal landscapes dominated by agricultural lands and small towns [3,5,10,13,29], offering a glimpse into the serene rural life seen on rural roads [30,31]. The experience is different, however, as the leisurely pace of rural roads allows for a more relaxed appreciation of the scenery.…”

“…In rural settings, studies [30,31] have evaluated the visual quality of rural roadside landscapes and focused on understanding public or specific group preferences for various rural landscapes. For mixed urban and rural areas, as seen in [37], the aim is to explore residents' preferences for agricultural and development patterns along urban and rural roads through residents, with the simultaneous intention of promoting economic development and improving the visual quality of the roadside.…”

“…[38] Rural road Public, motorcyclists Assessing the visual quality of the road landscape. [30,31] Urbanrural road…”

“…However, roadside trees and shrubs can negatively impact sightlines on major roads [42], and neglected vegetation maintenance can deteriorate visual experiences on rural roads [30]. These findings highlight the importance of balanced ecological management to maintain both aesthetic appeal and safety.…”