IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/sae/envirb/v47y2020i1p119-137.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Integrating road carrying capacity and traffic congestion into the excess commuting framework: The case of Los Angeles

Author

Listed:
  • Jiangping Zhou
  • Enda Murphy
  • Jonathan Corcoran

Abstract

The excess commuting framework has advanced a series of metrics through which a city or a region’s jobs-housing balance and commuting efficiency can be measured. This study seeks to add to the conceptual development and extension of the excess commuting framework. Specifically, it considers the carrying capacity (of links) and related congestion issues in the excess commuting framework and demonstrates that overlooking these characteristics has important implications for excess commuting metrics. Drawing on an empirical case study, it shows that when carrying capacity and traffic congestion are accounted for, the observed commute is longer than otherwise. Excess commuting tends to be higher than its counterparts in previous excess commuting studies. The findings suggest that future excess commuting studies should take account of carrying capacity and congestion in determining excess commuting metrics. Moreover, high-quality connections (preferably via public transport) between jobs and housing allied with sufficient carrying capacity of popular links/routes for commuters are crucial preconditions for cities and regions to harvest the full benefits of jobs-housing balance policies targeted at the reduction of the average commute distance and vehicle miles travelled.

Suggested Citation

  • Jiangping Zhou & Enda Murphy & Jonathan Corcoran, 2020. "Integrating road carrying capacity and traffic congestion into the excess commuting framework: The case of Los Angeles," Environment and Planning B, , vol. 47(1), pages 119-137, January.
  • Handle: RePEc:sae:envirb:v:47:y:2020:i:1:p:119-137
    DOI: 10.1177/2399808318773762
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/2399808318773762
    Download Restriction: no

    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1177/2399808318773762?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Manning, Alan, 2003. "The real thin theory: monopsony in modern labour markets," Labour Economics, Elsevier, vol. 10(2), pages 105-131, April.
    2. Small, Kenneth A & Song, Shunfeng, 1992. ""Wasteful" Commuting: A Resolution," Journal of Political Economy, University of Chicago Press, vol. 100(4), pages 888-898, August.
    3. Kang‐Rae Ma & David Banister, 2006. "Excess Commuting: A Critical Review," Transport Reviews, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 26(6), pages 749-767, May.
    4. Murphy, Enda, 2009. "Excess commuting and modal choice," Transportation Research Part A: Policy and Practice, Elsevier, vol. 43(8), pages 735-743, October.
    5. Hu, Yujie & Wang, Fahui, 2015. "Decomposing excess commuting: a Monte Carlo simulation approach," Journal of Transport Geography, Elsevier, vol. 44(C), pages 43-52.
    6. Giuliano, Genevieve, 1991. "Is Jobs-Housing Balance a Transportation Issue?," University of California Transportation Center, Working Papers qt4874r4hg, University of California Transportation Center.
    7. Genevieve Giuliano & Kenneth A. Small, 1993. "Is the Journey to Work Explained by Urban Structure?," Urban Studies, Urban Studies Journal Limited, vol. 30(9), pages 1485-1500, November.
    8. Niedzielski, Michael A. & Horner, Mark W. & Xiao, Ningchuan, 2013. "Analyzing scale independence in jobs-housing and commute efficiency metrics," Transportation Research Part A: Policy and Practice, Elsevier, vol. 58(C), pages 129-143.
    9. White, Michelle J, 1988. "Urban Commuting Journeys Are Not "Wasteful."," Journal of Political Economy, University of Chicago Press, vol. 96(5), pages 1097-1110, October.
    10. Frost, Martin & Linneker, Brian & Spence, Nigel, 1998. "Excess or wasteful commuting in a selection of British cities," Transportation Research Part A: Policy and Practice, Elsevier, vol. 32(7), pages 529-538, September.
    11. Kanaroglou, Pavlos S. & Higgins, Christopher D. & Chowdhury, Tufayel A., 2015. "Excess commuting: a critical review and comparative analysis of concepts, indices, and policy implications," Journal of Transport Geography, Elsevier, vol. 44(C), pages 13-23.
    12. White, M.J., 1988. "Urban Commuting Journeys Are Not Wasteful," Papers 88-10, Michigan - Center for Research on Economic & Social Theory.
    13. Schleith, Daniel & Widener, Michael & Kim, Changjoo, 2016. "An examination of the jobs-housing balance of different categories of workers across 26 metropolitan regions," Journal of Transport Geography, Elsevier, vol. 57(C), pages 145-160.
    14. Christopher D. Higgins & Matthias N. Sweet & Pavlos S. Kanaroglou, 2018. "All minutes are not equal: travel time and the effects of congestion on commute satisfaction in Canadian cities," Transportation, Springer, vol. 45(5), pages 1249-1268, September.
    15. David Merriman & Toru Ohkawara & Tsutomu Suzuki, 1995. "Excess Commuting in the Tokyo Metropolitan Area: Measurement and Policy Simulations," Urban Studies, Urban Studies Journal Limited, vol. 32(1), pages 69-85, February.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Chen, Ruoyu & Zhang, Min & Zhou, Jiangping, 2023. "Jobs-housing relationships before and amid COVID-19: An excess-commuting approach," Journal of Transport Geography, Elsevier, vol. 106(C).

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Jiangping, Zhou & Chun, Zhang & Xiaojian, Chen & Wei, Huang & Peng, Yu, 2014. "Has the legacy of Danwei persisted in transformations? the jobs-housing balance and commuting efficiency in Xi’an," Journal of Transport Geography, Elsevier, vol. 40(C), pages 64-76.
    2. Jiangping Zhou & Ying Long, 2016. "Losers and Pareto optimality in optimising commuting patterns," Urban Studies, Urban Studies Journal Limited, vol. 53(12), pages 2511-2529, September.
    3. Zhou, Jiangping & Murphy, Enda, 2019. "Day-to-day variation in excess commuting: An exploratory study of Brisbane, Australia," Journal of Transport Geography, Elsevier, vol. 74(C), pages 223-232.
    4. Chen, Ruoyu & Zhang, Min & Zhou, Jiangping, 2023. "Jobs-housing relationships before and amid COVID-19: An excess-commuting approach," Journal of Transport Geography, Elsevier, vol. 106(C).
    5. Qin, Ping & Wang, Lanlan, 2019. "Job opportunities, institutions, and the jobs-housing spatial relationship: Case study of Beijing," Transport Policy, Elsevier, vol. 81(C), pages 331-339.
    6. Korsu, Emre & Le Néchet, Florent, 2017. "Would fewer people drive to work in a city without excess commuting? Explorations in the Paris metropolitan area," Transportation Research Part A: Policy and Practice, Elsevier, vol. 95(C), pages 259-274.
    7. Bwire, Hannibal & Zengo, Emil, 2020. "Comparison of efficiency between public and private transport modes using excess commuting: An experience in Dar es Salaam," Journal of Transport Geography, Elsevier, vol. 82(C).
    8. Saadi, Ismaïl & Boussauw, Kobe & Teller, Jacques & Cools, Mario, 2016. "Trends in regional jobs-housing proximity based on the minimum commute: The case of Belgium," Journal of Transport Geography, Elsevier, vol. 57(C), pages 171-183.
    9. Zhang, Hong & Xu, Shan & Liu, Xuan & Liu, Chengliang, 2021. "Near “real-time” estimation of excess commuting from open-source data: Evidence from China's megacities," Journal of Transport Geography, Elsevier, vol. 91(C).
    10. Cheng, Lin & Chen, Chen & Xiu, Chunliang, 2017. "Excess kindergarten travel in Changchun, Northeast China: A measure of residence-kindergarten spatial mismatch," Journal of Transport Geography, Elsevier, vol. 60(C), pages 208-216.
    11. Schleith, Daniel & Widener, Michael & Kim, Changjoo, 2016. "An examination of the jobs-housing balance of different categories of workers across 26 metropolitan regions," Journal of Transport Geography, Elsevier, vol. 57(C), pages 145-160.
    12. Enda Murphy & James E. Killen, 2011. "Commuting Economy," Urban Studies, Urban Studies Journal Limited, vol. 48(6), pages 1255-1272, May.
    13. Martin John Watts, 2009. "The Impact of Spatial Imbalance and Socioeconomic Characteristics on Average Distance Commuted in the Sydney Metropolitan Area," Urban Studies, Urban Studies Journal Limited, vol. 46(2), pages 317-339, February.
    14. Myung-Jin Jun & Simon Choi & Frank Wen & Ki-Hyun Kwon, 2018. "Effects of urban spatial structure on level of excess commutes: A comparison between Seoul and Los Angeles," Urban Studies, Urban Studies Journal Limited, vol. 55(1), pages 195-211, January.
    15. Murphy, Enda, 2009. "Excess commuting and modal choice," Transportation Research Part A: Policy and Practice, Elsevier, vol. 43(8), pages 735-743, October.
    16. Niedzielski, Michael A. & Horner, Mark W. & Xiao, Ningchuan, 2013. "Analyzing scale independence in jobs-housing and commute efficiency metrics," Transportation Research Part A: Policy and Practice, Elsevier, vol. 58(C), pages 129-143.
    17. Mark W. Horner, 2008. "`Optimal' Accessibility Landscapes? Development of a New Methodology for Simulating and Assessing Jobs—Housing Relationships in Urban Regions," Urban Studies, Urban Studies Journal Limited, vol. 45(8), pages 1583-1602, July.
    18. Suzuki, Tsutomu & Lee, Sohee, 2012. "Jobs–housing imbalance, spatial correlation, and excess commuting," Transportation Research Part A: Policy and Practice, Elsevier, vol. 46(2), pages 322-336.
    19. Michael A. Niedzielski, 2006. "A Spatially Disaggregated Approach to Commuting Efficiency," Urban Studies, Urban Studies Journal Limited, vol. 43(13), pages 2485-2502, December.
    20. Kim, Kyusik & Horner, Mark W., 2021. "Examining the impacts of the Great Recession on the commuting dynamics and jobs-housing balance of public and private sector workers," Journal of Transport Geography, Elsevier, vol. 90(C).

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:sae:envirb:v:47:y:2020:i:1:p:119-137. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: SAGE Publications (email available below). General contact details of provider: .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.