Evaluation of Factors Influencing Perceived Access to Urban Recreational Parks in Abuja Metropolitan City, Nigeria

Abstract

Existing study on perceived access to urban parks have given so much emphasis on physical attributes to the neglect of social attributes of accessibility. In order to bridge this gap, this study examined the social attributes of park accessibility in Abuja metropolitan city. Data were obtained from leisure visitors who were selected using purposive sampling in three urban parks in Abuja namely: Millenium Park (Maitama Neighbourhood), Sunrise Park (Wuse 2 Neighbourhood) and Magic Land (Lugbe Road Area One). 250 questionaires were administered in each park in the evenings on week days and morning and evenings on weekends for two weeks, which yielded a return rate of 43.46%. To address the two research questions, descriptive analysis of socio-demographic variables, multiple regression analysis, cross tabulation and chi-square with Eta and Gamma statistics and Mann-Whitney U test were conducted. The findings of the study among others revealed that only knowledge dimension and transport dimensions of perceived accessibility significantly influence access to urban parks in Abuja city. Furthermore, only gender, income level, and occupation influence access to urban park in Abuja city. This study therefore emphasizes the importance of taking social dimensions into consideration by urban planners and landscape architects as a holistic way of improving access to urban park.