How Big Is the Real Road-Effect Zone? The Impact of the Highway on the Landscape Structure—A Case Study

Abstract

Roads, due to their large spatial scale, significantly affect the landscape, causing numerous and usually irreversible changes. Due to a lack of consensus among various specialists and varying evidence on the extent of the influence of roads, the present study focused on the clarification of the real range of the effect of roads on the environment, especially the landscape structure. The aim of the study was to assess road-effect zones for different types of land use. The existing sections of the European route E30 in the Wielkopolska region (Poland) were selected for the research. Based on buffer analysis, landscape metrics and statistical analysis, such as cluster analysis and changes in mean and variance, the spatial diversity of the landscape and road-effect zone was characterized. The results indicate the spatial diversity of the landscape structure and the range of impact, which depended on the type of land cover. Therefore, to analyze the road-effect zone, it is necessary to take into consideration not only the variable range of impact due to the type of road or the time of exploitation, but also the different types of land use of areas surrounding the road.