Time-Use Patterns and Sustainable Urban Form: A Case Study to Explore Potential Links

Abstract

Linking time use of the inhabitants of a city with their energy consumption and urban form is an approach which allows integration of the social dimension into research on sustainable urban development. While much has been written about the planning of cities and its implications for human social life, the question of the relationship between time-use patterns and urban form remains underexplored. This is all the more astonishing as time-use statistics offer a unique tool for analysing socio-economic changes regarding family and household structures, gender relations, working hours, recreational behaviour and consumption patterns. Furthermore, spatial planning plays a significant role in establishing time structures. With this paper we aim to explore the possibility of using the time-use data of an urban population to find links between individual time-use patterns and urban form. We describe a case study in Vienna where we addressed time use and mobility of citizens in a participatory approach to jointly develop an integrated socio-ecological model of urban time-use patterns and energy consumption. OPEN ACCESSSustainability 2015, 7 8023

Time Matters: The Carbon Footprint of Everyday Activities in Austria

“…Motorized individual transport is the travel activity with the highest carbon intensity. Urban form with differences in density, mixed land use, morphology (polycentric, compact cities) leads to differing carbon footprints (Haselsteiner et al, 2015; Heinonen et al, 2013b; Newman and Kenworthy, 2000; Wiedenhofer et al, 2013). Fast, available and affordable public transport services, true costs of private car use and parking, and short distances between work places, living spaces and community services are key to reductions of energy use and emissions.…”

Urban facilities in the quality of life research: a case study of Banská Bystrica city (Central Slovakia)

“…There is a certain similarity with factors affecting sustainability of a city, such as mixed land use (defined by Haselsteiner et al (2015, p. 8028) as a " [...] close proximity between housing, workplaces, educational institutions, leisure and supply infrastructure or green spaces"), intensity of land use and urban density (in terms of population density and density of buildings), all of them mentioned by e.g. Thompson (2002), Bertolini (2005), Jabareen (2006), Banister (2008), Silva et al (2014), Gillis et al (2015) and Haselsteiner et al (2015). This supports the theory of Massam (2002), Ira and Andráško (2010) and others that QoUL and sustainability of a city are closely linked together.…”

Tourist Perception of the Value of Time on Holidays: Implications for the Time Use Rebound Effect and Sustainable Travel Practice

“…However, under time constraints, “rational” decision making and consumption in terms of environmental sustainability are not always practically feasible (Jackson 2005). Time availability determines a tourist’s travel mode choice both en-route and at the destination (Haselsteiner et al 2015; Prideaux 2000). The lack of time can prompt tourists to choose faster travel because time spent traveling is often seen as wasted time (Lyons and Urry 2005).…”