Spatial and social inequities for educational services accessibility - A case study for schools in Greater Mumbai

Abstract

Education is one of the crucial aspects of an individual's life, contributing to economic and social well-being. Lack of adequate access to educational services to children can affect their overall well-being. Further, an inadequate supply of educational opportunities can reinforce social inequalities. This research develops a conceptual framework to measure accessibility for educational services using an extensive dataset of mode-wise travel time matrix of 577 Traffic Analysis Zones (TAZ) and 4308 schools in Greater Mumbai. We evaluated spatial and social equity from urban and transportation planning perspectives for access to educational services. The Gini index is used to assess the distribution of educational accessibility and quantify the spatial inequity. Social inequity is quantified based on the mode-wise accessibility ratio for educational services. The average accessibility ratio shows that the gap in access by public transport and private mode reduces as the threshold increases. A decision framework is developed based on accessibility measures, and policy measures are suggested to address the existing inequities. This study can help planners and policymakers effectively prioritise the suggested measures to maximise the benefits and address spatial and social inequities for access to educational services.