The concept of livability has gained tremendous popularity in research and had been used in
practice and planning theory for the last 50 years (Kaal, 2011). Nevertheless, the term is not
well defined, and many studies were driven to understand what makes an urban space livable.
Livability, as such, reflects the quality of living and the wellbeing of people by satisfying all
their necessary needs (Haan et al., 2014). On the contrary, no studies have been done to assess
the livability in neighborhood commercial streets in Muscat. The aim of the present research is
to investigate the level of livability in neighborhood commercial streets of Muscat, based on
the themes and urban quality criteria's developed by Gehl (Gehl Institute, 2018) with the
purpose of defining the important design aspects that could affect them. Thus, three case studies
were selected for this purpose. The methodological approach used is of both a qualitative and
a quantitative nature. By conducting a comprehensive literature review to better understand the
concept and tools that could help to study commercial livable streets in neighborhoods.
Moreover, questionnaires, behavioral mapping, and walkthroughs were the chosen research
methods applied in the selected streets for the case studies to identify the patterns of the people
who visit during weekends and weekdays. The data analysis revealed that themes of enjoyment
and comfort are the most important to be considered in the design of neighborhood commercial
streets. Accessibility, aesthetic appeal, activities, and pedestrian friendly streets are factors that
have attracted people and promoted the use of space, thus, enhancing the level of livability in
these streets. This study has contributed to the body of knowledge by generating a set of criteria
and indicators that can be used to assess the level of livability in commercial streets in Muscat.
These criteria and indicators could be generalized to other cities in the Gulf and in similar geocultural contexts.