Experimental Street Curb Designs Show Promise for Guiding Rainwater to Urban Greenery
Digital simulations conducted in South Korea have demonstrated that modifying the extrusion height and inclination angle of street curbs can significantly alter rainwater retention and direct its flow towards roadside green infrastructure. Researchers Joung Been Bae and Gunwon Lee evaluated parametric curb designs, finding that increasing curb extrusion height led to higher rainwater retention capacity, with 210-millimeter profiles showing peak droplet retention. However, these taller configurations also exhibited greater variability. Lower extrusion heights (110 mm and 160 mm) provided moderate retention with more stable hydraulic behavior. Mid-range inclination angles around 3 degrees consistently yielded optimal retention and flow guidance, suggesting a passive geometric configuration capable of delivering moisture to street-edge vegetation without requiring active mechanical infrastructure. This research aims to address operational constraints of roadside green infrastructure, such as limited space and...
