Exploring the Influence of Sprawl on Commuting in the Seville Metropolitan Area (Spain)

Abstract

Background The promotion of public transit and active commuting modes aims to reduce private motor vehicle dependence. Many studies have demonstrated the connection between urban sprawl and travel behavior, mainly in Anglo-Saxon countries. However, little evidence exists of this association in Mediterranean countries. Methods Mairena del Aljarafe, a municipality of 44,388 inhabitants located in the Seville Metropolitan Area, was divided into 10 homogeneous areas. Sprawl levels were then calculated for each of these areas using an aggregated sprawl index composed of 7 individual indicators: gross population density, residential density, building coefficient, diversity of land uses, predominant land use, proportion of mixed land use and building year of each of the 10 areas. Weights were assigned to each indicator using AHP methodology and the aggregated sprawl index was calculated via Choquet Integral, which acts as criteria aggregation operator based on an additive measure-based. Information on travel behavior was taken from the 2015 Commuting, Daily Habits and Urban Health Survey of a representative sample of 520 adults (16-64 years old) in the municipality of Mairena del Aljarafe. Using the PLUM Regression method, which is suitable for ordinal categorical variables, we explored the possible association between level of urban sprawl and travel behavior. Results Travel behavior depends on many factors, but the likelihood of using a particular commute mode is in part associated with the level of urban sprawl. Observed values are extremely similar to those expected, which demonstrates that the model perfectly predicts the likelihood of using specific commute modes according to the level of urban sprawl. Moreover, the obtained results demonstrate that the population living in areas with high levels of sprawl is more likely to use private motor vehicles and less likely to use public transit and active commuting, spend more money and allocate more time to commuting, compared to those living in less sprawling areas. Conclusions Urban sprawl has been demonstrated to lead to the choice of specific commute modes, influencing different aspects of daily life of the population living in Spain. Funding This work was supported by the Spanish Ministry of Economy, Industry and Competitiveness (CSO2015-66855-P/MINECO/FEDER, UE)