Land use variables affecting travel behaviour: a review

Abstract

Research on the impact of land use variables on travel behaviour is reviewed. The focus is on density as an important measure of land use and its interaction with transportation systems. The effect of density was first addressed decades ago, so research published since the 1960s was reviewed. The reviewed works were classified into two groups according to the most commonly used measure of density and the most common variables of travel behaviour. The first group comprised 26 studies published before 2000 and the second group comprised more than 45 studies published after 2000. Population density was the main density term used in the first group while employment density and configurations of densities were integrated as measures in the second group. A direct relationship between mode choice and journey length was established. However, knowledge gaps were also identified, such as the effect of density on trip generation rate, type of trip according to trip purpose, internal and external trips, and trips on weekdays and weekends.