Urban development and climate change

Accessibility in Cities: Transport and Urban Form

“…Controlling for other factors, the difference in transport intensity between high-and low-density areas can be more than 40% in vehicle-miles-travelled per capita (Ewing, Bartholomew et al 2008). The National Research Council in the US estimates that doubling densities within metropolitan regions can reduce vehicle-kilometres-travelled (VKT) by up to 25 per cent when also concentrating employment (National Research Council 2009).…”

“…A scenario study for US metropolitan areas in cities such as Atlanta and Phoenix suggests a reduction of 7 to 10 per cent in carbon emissions as a result of a 20 to 40 per cent reduction in vehicle-miles-travelled due to compact urban development (Ewing, Bartholomew et al 2008). In the Indian city of Surat, estimates for annual carbon emissions resulting from a projected tenfold increase in the number of trips varies according to the mode choice and trip length -from 1.9 up to 9.5 million tonnes of CO 2 .…”

The co-benefits for health of investing in active transportation

“…Ignoring the implementation of complementary strategies (e.g. congestion pricing, increased transit use) or co-benefits, Ewing and colleagues 65 recently estimated that a change in land-use planning in the USA (from urban sprawl to compact development) could reduce vehicle miles travelled by 20-40% and transportation greenhouse emissions by 7-10% by 2050.…”

“…Nevertheless, to have an impact, active transportation requires land-use planning and infrastructure investment that creates pedestrian and cycling-friendly communities. 62,65 Numerous studies now point to the importance of the built environment as a determinant of active transportation. 2,3 Moreover, studies have recently begun to demonstrate the effectiveness of infrastructure investments in changing behaviour, 62 and their cost effectiveness as a public health 66,67 or transport and health 68 intervention.…”

Low-wage jobs-housing fit: identifying locations of affordable housing shortages

“…Colocating housing and jobs can allow people to live close to their workplace, thus reducing overall congestion, vehicle miles traveled (VMT), and associated greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions (Cervero & Duncan, 2006;Ewing, Bartholomew, Winkelman, Walters, & Anderson, 2008). Ensuring an approximate balance of housing and jobs is also important for maintaining overall housing affordability, since an inadequate supply of housing in relation to jobs inevitably results in rising housing prices (Dowall, 1982;Gober, McHugh, & Leclerc, 1993).…”