Impact of Urban Sprawl with New-town Development on Decline of Inner City: Implications for Regional Urban Regeneration Policies

Abstract

Korea has experienced rapid urbanization similar to urban sprawl that has caused urban problems such as traffic jam, degradation of green space, and the decline of inner cities. Also, new-town developments in suburban areas have promoted the decline of inner cities. Recently enacted urban regeneration policies targeting these problems do not consider regional-level causes of urban decline, such as urban sprawl. The purpose of this study is to measure the impacts of urban sprawl on the decline of inner city taking into account new-town developments in suburban areas. Two multiple regression models are employed with changes in population and establishments of inner cities as dependent variables. The urban sprawl index, new-town development, their interaction term, and other control variables are used as independent variables. The results show that urban sprawl accompanied by new-town development rather than typical urban sprawl negatively affects inner cities by decreasing their population and establishments.