Advertisement

Mapping Walking Accessibility, Bus Availability, and Car Dependence: A Case Study of Xiamen, China

  • Hui WangEmail author
Chapter
First Online:
  • 2.2k Downloads
Part of the Strategies for Sustainability book series (STSU)

Abstract

As stated in the existing literature, travel behavior and transportation choice are closely related to urban forms and the built environment. The study presented in this chapter attempts to conduct a citywide evaluation of the walking accessibility to urban facilities and the availability of public transport, as well as relevant potential car dependence. By taking the city of Xiamen, China, as a case study, the current study generates some useful information vis-à-vis both public transport and urban facility providers, by illustrating the city’s spatial patterns and identifying problematic areas. The methodology developed in this study might also serve as a reference for future studies.

Keywords

Sustainable transportation Walking accessibility Bus availability Car dependence Xiamen 
This is a preview of subscription content, log in to check access.

Notes

Acknowledgement

The research is supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Project Item: No. 41071101), the Research Fellowship Scheme (2011–2012) at Peking University-Lincoln Institute of Land Policy (Project Item: No. FS-20110901), and the Research Start-up Fund for Introduced Talents at Xiamen University.

The author thanks three graduate students, Huang Jiuju, Li Yongling, and Yan Xin, in the Department of Urban Planning, Xiamen University, for their assistance in collecting and processing data.

References

  1. Begg D (1998) Car free cities: reducing traffic in cities: avoiding the transport time bomb. The Third Car-free Cities conference, Edinburgh, June 1998Google Scholar
  2. China Society of Urban Studies (2009) China’s low carbon eco-city development strategy. China City Press, BeijingGoogle Scholar
  3. Condon PM (2010) Seven rules for sustainable communities: design strategies for the post-carbon world. Island Press, Washington, DCGoogle Scholar
  4. Congress for the New Urbanism (2000) Charter of the new urbanism. McGraw-Hill, New YorkGoogle Scholar
  5. Cooper S, Wright P, Ball R (2009) Measuring the accessibility of opportunities and services in dense urban environments: experiences from London. In: Proceedings of European Transport Conference 2009, Leeuwenhorst Conference Center, The Netherlands, 5–7 Oct 2009Google Scholar
  6. Cullinane S, Cullinane K (2003) Car dependence in a public transport dominated city: evidences from Hong Kong. Transp Res Pt D Transp Environ 8(2):129–138CrossRefGoogle Scholar
  7. Grengs, J. (2001) Does public transit counteract the segregation of carless households? Measuring spatial patterns of accessibility. Transportation Research Record 1753, paper No.01–3534Google Scholar
  8. Gorham R (2002) Car dependence as a social problem: a critical essay on the existing literature and future needs. In: Black WR, Nijkamp P (eds) Social change and sustainable transport. Indiana University Press, Bloomington, pp 106–115Google Scholar
  9. Guo Z (2010) The value of “abandoning car dependence” for the development of eco-cities in China. Ecol Econ 1:183–185Google Scholar
  10. Handy SL, Clifton KJ (2001) Evaluating neighbourhood accessibility: possibilities and practicalities. J Transp Stat 4:67–78Google Scholar
  11. Hearn MD, Baranowski T, Baranowski J et al (1998) Environmental influence on dietary behavior among children: availability and accessibility of fruits and vegetables enable consumption. J Health Educ 29(1):26–32Google Scholar
  12. Huang F (2004) Towards the future urban planning and design. China Architecture and Building Press, BeijingGoogle Scholar
  13. Kenworthy J, Laube F (1999) Patterns of automobile dependence in cities: an international overview of key physical and economic dimensions with some implications for urban policy. Transp Res Pt A Policy Pract 33(7-8):691–723CrossRefGoogle Scholar
  14. Kenworthy J, Laube F (2001) The millennium cities database for sustainable transport. International Union of Public Transport, Brussels/Institute for Sustainability and Technology Policy, PerthGoogle Scholar
  15. Mackett RL (2009) Why is it so difficult to reduce car use? In: Proceedings of European Transport Conference 2009, Leeuwenhorst Conference Center, The Netherlands, 5–7 Oct 2009Google Scholar
  16. Naess P (2006) Urban structure matters: residential location, car dependence and travel behavior. Routledge, New YorkGoogle Scholar
  17. NDRCC (National Development and Reform Commission of China) (2007) China's National Climate Change Programme, pp 7–9Google Scholar
  18. Newman P, Kenworthy J (1989) Cities and automobile dependence: an international sourcebook. Gower, AldershotGoogle Scholar
  19. Newman P, Kenworthy J (1999) Sustainability and cities: overcoming automobile dependence. Island Press, Washington, DCGoogle Scholar
  20. Newman P, Kenworthy J (2000) Sustainable urban form: the big picture. In: Williams K, Burton E, Jenks M (eds) Achieving sustainable urban form. E & FN Spon, Taylor & Francis Group, London, pp 109–120Google Scholar
  21. Newman P, Kenworthy J (2006) Urban design to reduce automobile dependence. Opolis: Int J Suburb Metrop Stud 2(1):35–52Google Scholar
  22. Pan H, Tang Y, Wu J (2008) China’s spatial planning strategies for “low-carbon city”. Urban Plan Forum 6:57–64Google Scholar
  23. Qian J (2010) Out of a jam: China can choose sustainable transportation and smart growth instead of car dependence and hyper-motorization. A blog posted 27 September 2010 in Greening China. http://switchboard.nrdc.org/blogs/qian/out_of_a_jam.html
  24. Reneland M (2000) Accessibility in Swedish towns. In: Williams K, Burton E, Jenks M (eds) Achieving sustainable urban form. E & FN Spon, Taylor & Francis Group, London, pp 131–138Google Scholar
  25. Simmonds D, Coombe D (2000) The transport implications of alternative urban forms. In: Williams K, Burton E, Jenks M (eds) Achieving sustainable urban form. E & FN Spon, Taylor & Francis Group, London, pp 121–130Google Scholar
  26. Stradling SG (2002) Combating car dependence. In: Proceedings of the Twelfth Seminar on Behavioral Research in Road Safety, pp 174–187. Dep. of Transport: London, 23 Dec 2002Google Scholar
  27. Stradling SG (2003) Reducing car dependence. In: Hine J, Preston J (eds) Integrated futures and transport choices: UK transport policy beyond 1998 White Paper and Acts. Ashgate, Aldershot, pp 100–115Google Scholar
  28. Turcotte M (2001) Dependence on cars in urban neighborhoods. Statistics Canada (2001), Catalogue-11-008, 20–30Google Scholar
  29. Winter EC (1992) Are we ignoring population density in health planning? The issue of availability and accessibility. Health Policy Plan 7(2):191–193PubMedCrossRefGoogle Scholar

Copyright information

© Springer Science+Business Media Dordrecht 2013

Authors and Affiliations

  1. 1.Department of Urban PlanningXiamen UniversityXiamenChina
  2. 2.Cross-Straits Institute of Urban Planning at Xiamen UniversityXiamen UniversityXiamenChina

Personalised recommendations

Cite chapter

Buy options