A Land-Use Transport Model to Assess the Impact of Urban Policies on Carbon Dioxide Reduction and Sustainability

Abstract

Urban policies are considered important measures for mitigating global warming. They are estimated to have a substantial positive impact on CO2 emissions from urban activities, owing to changes in the behavior of actors in the urban system. This means that urban mitigation policies would also affect the quality of life of urban residents. The impact of urban policies should therefore be assessed with regards to both CO2 emissions and sustainability. This study demonstrates the applicability of a land-use transport model to urban mitigation policy assessment. First, the authors develop a model in which actors’ location decisions and travel behavior are explicitly formulated. Second, this model is applied to two urban policies, road pricing and land-use regulation, to assess their long-term impact on CO2 emissions and sustainability. The study verifies that the developed model has the capacity, under assumed conditions, to consistently assess urban policies regarding CO2 emissions and sustainability.