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The influence of urban form on car travel following residential relocation: a current and retrospective study in Scottish urban areas

Author

Listed:
  • Lee Woods

    (University of Portsmouth)

  • Neil S. Ferguson

    (University of Strathclyde)

Abstract

Spatial planning and policy continues to be used as a tool to bring about changes in travel behavior. Policy suggests that by creating particular urban forms, demand for travel by car can be reduced. This paper uses data collected in 2006 from 280 households in Glasgow and Edinburgh to analyze the relationships between urban form and vehicle miles driven, with an emphasis on those who had recently relocated. Population densities, housing type, distance to urban center, and measures of mix were collected for the current residential location and prior residence for those who had relocated in the previous three years. An ordinal regression model of change in urban form showed significant associations with reported change in miles driven, although the effect was small compared with the effects of socioeconomic factors and car ownership. While the results give some weight to intensification as a policy to bring about a reduction in average distance driven, there may be an increase in total distance driven in the intensified area with a corresponding increase in congestion. Whether such intensification can be enacted against a backdrop of preferences toward suburban, car-oriented living is contentious. As such, this study calls into question the use of planning policy as a means to reduce car use in Scottish cities.

Suggested Citation

  • Lee Woods & Neil S. Ferguson, 2014. "The influence of urban form on car travel following residential relocation: a current and retrospective study in Scottish urban areas," The Journal of Transport and Land Use, Center for Transportation Studies, University of Minnesota, vol. 7(1), pages 95-104.
    • Handle: RePEc:ris:jtralu:0123
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    Cited by:

    1. Bindong Sun & Tinglin Zhang & Zhou He & Rui Wang, 2017. "Urban Spatial Structure And Motorization In China," Journal of Regional Science, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 57(3), pages 470-486, June.
    2. Jie Song & Ruoniu Wang, 2017. "Measuring the Spatial Dimension of Automobile Ownership and Its Associations with Household Characteristics and Land Use Patterns: A Case Study in Three Counties, South Florida (USA)," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 9(4), pages 1-19, April.
    3. De Vos, Jonas & Ettema, Dick & Witlox, Frank, 2018. "Changing travel behaviour and attitudes following a residential relocation," Journal of Transport Geography, Elsevier, vol. 73(C), pages 131-147.
    4. Xue, Fei & Yao, Enjian & Jin, Fanglei, 2020. "Exploring residential relocation behavior for families with workers and students; a study from Beijing, China," Journal of Transport Geography, Elsevier, vol. 89(C).
    5. Jain, Deepty & Tiwari, Geetam, 2019. "Measuring density and diversity to model travel behavior in Indian context," Land Use Policy, Elsevier, vol. 88(C).
    6. De Vos, Jonas & Mouratidis, Kostas & Cheng, Long & Kamruzzaman, Md., 2021. "Does a residential relocation enable satisfying travel?," Transportation Research Part A: Policy and Practice, Elsevier, vol. 153(C), pages 188-201.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Transport; Land Use; Urban Form; Planning Policy;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • R40 - Urban, Rural, Regional, Real Estate, and Transportation Economics - - Transportation Economics - - - General

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