Transportation and Land Use: A Comparative Analysis

University Of Southern California, Los Angeles CA

Investigators

Abstract

Contemporary U.S. metropolitan areas are characterized by decentralized or dispersed patterns of land use, have generally low average densities, and are dominated by private vehicle travel. Explanations for these trends in the U.S. include an array of policy decisions that have promoted decentralization and made the private vehicle easily accessible. Increasing rates of car ownership and use is a world-wide phenomenon, however, suggesting that per capita income growth and basic economic and social trends may be key explanatory factors. This research project will investigate the relationship between mobility and urban form using international comparative analysis. The project will develop and estimate models of individual travel behavior and will test hypotheses regarding the extent to which land use characteristics explain travel patterns. Using person-level travel survey data from the U.S., Great Britain and the Netherlands, individual mobility patterns will be examined. The following questions will be addressed: To what extent to differences in metropolitan spatial form explain differences in mobility? What local spatial characteristics affect mobility, and do these differ across countries? To what extent do differences in transportation supply characteristics explain differences in mobility? How important are these factors relative to demographics and socioeconomic factors? Do relationships differ by travel purpose? International comparative analysis will permit examination across a wide variety of spatial forms and transportation system characteristics as well as across very different policy environments. This broader approach should lead to greater understanding of the underlying processes that lead to observed travel outcomes. Mobility generates great benefits to individuals and society, but it also generates significant costs. Many critics argue that current trends are not sustainable and that coordinated policies must be developed to reverse current land use and transportation patterns. Policies to increase the density and mix of activities are proposed as effective strategies for achieving sustainability goals, as increased accessibility should reduce private vehicle use and increase use of transit and non-motorized modes. However, rising per capita incomes, economic restructuring and globalization, and changing demographics may make restrictive policies either less effective or less acceptable. Thus it is not clear that efforts to change land use patterns would lead to significantly different travel patterns. This project will provide a careful and comprehensive empirical analysis that is necessary for understanding the role of spatial form in travel behavior, thereby broadening fundamental understandings of these interrelationships and helping to guide future policy development.