Abstract
Given the current lack of accessibility research on road networks in 36 major cities in China, the accessibility and its spatial difference were measured by using space syntax and Moran index. The purpose is to provide an important decision-making basis for the Chinese government to grasp the accessibility level of China’s urban roads in general and formulate urban traffic development policies. The results show that the mean value of the global integration average is only 1.0009, indicating that the accessibility level is not optimistic in general. The accessibility of 36 major cities was divided into four levels: very low, low, high, and very high. Only four cities, namely Beijing, Shijiazhuang, Xi’an, and Zhengzhou, were at a very high level. The spatial differences of accessibility presented a spatial pattern of "middle-high, east-middle, and west-low". The global integration average, intelligibility, and synergy had significant global spatial autocorrelation, while the local spatial agglomeration distributions of these three indexes were dominated by high-high types. The five cities of Beijing, Shijiazhuang, Hohhot, Taiyuan, and Zhengzhou constituted the core area of high-value clustering of local spatial autocorrelation and presented a spatial form of inverted "T" shape. The research still has some limitations. The reasons for the low accessibility of developed cities, such as Guangzhou and Nanjing, are worth further analysis. Besides, the main possible influencing factors affecting accessibility, such as urban road density and spatial form, are also worthy of further analysis.
Highlights
Road network is the backbone of urban space development and construction by supporting the flow of people and vehicles as the basic channel; it plays a critical and core role in urban economic and social development
The accessibility level of a road network is an important factor affecting the sustainable development of cities
This paper provides a method to measure the accessibility and spatial differences of the 36 major urban road networks in China by the comprehensive application of Space Syntax and spatial autocorrelation analysis, which can be regarded as one useful attempt and exploration in urban traffic accessibility research field
Summary
Road network is the backbone of urban space development and construction by supporting the flow of people and vehicles as the basic channel; it plays a critical and core role in urban economic and social development. If the accessibility of urban road network is worse, it will increase the time cost, transaction cost, and production cost of travel and transportation, which will reduce the opportunity of economic and social exchanges among different people and regions, and reduce the operational efficiency of the urban economic and social system and the ability of the city to create various kinds of wealth. This poses a great challenge to the sustainable development of the urban economy and society. The accessibility level of a road network is an important factor affecting the sustainable development of cities
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