The Neighborhood Effect on Keeping Non-Commuting Journeys within Compact and Sprawled Districts

Melika Mehriar,Syed Mubasher Gillani,Atif Bilal Aslam,Houshmand Masoumi

doi:10.3390/land10111245

Abstract

The neighborhood effect on keeping non-commuting trips inside neighborhoods has not yet been investigated in developing countries. The modeling of non-commuting trips inside neighborhoods helps understand how to avoid unnecessary journeys by car into different parts of the city. This paper, therefore, attempts to clarify (1) the similarities and differences in the socioeconomic characteristics and the perceptions of people in sprawled and compact neighborhoods, (2) correlations between, on the one hand, the choice of destinations of non-commuting trips for shopping and entertainment activities and, on the other, the socioeconomic features, travel behavior, and perceptions of residents in the two large Pakistani cities of Lahore and Rawalpindi, (3) the similarities and differences in the determinants of non-commuting destinations inside neighborhoods in compact and sprawled districts. The paper develops four Binary Logistic (BL) regression models, with two models for each type of neighborhood. The findings show that trips to shopping areas inside compact districts are correlated with a sense of belonging to the neighborhood, frequency of public transport use, residential location, and mode choice of non-commuting trips to destinations both inside and outside the neighborhood. On the other hand, the number of non-commuting trips, mode choice for non-commuting trips outside the neighborhood, frequency of public transport use, the attractiveness of shops, and monthly income (please see the Note) are significant determinants for trips to the shopping area in sprawled districts. Age, gender, possession of a driver’s license, income, number of non-commuting trips, mode choice for non-commuting trips outside of the neighborhood, car ownership, and attractiveness of shops in a neighborhood are correlated with trips to entertainment locations inside the neighborhood in compact districts. Finally, the attractiveness of shops, quality of social and recreational facilities, a sense of belonging to a neighborhood, choice of residential location, gender, age, possession of a driver’s license, number of cars in the household, and income are determinants of trips to entertainment locations in sprawled districts. A chi-square test confirms the differences across gender, daily activity, monthly income, frequency of public transport use, residential location choice, and the quality of social and recreational facilities for sprawled and compact districts in Pakistan.

Highlights

Urban sprawl is defined as a specific urban form where development areas are characterized by single use-zoning, reduced accessibility, and increased car dependency
The choice of destination of shopping areas is associated with the number of non-commuting trips, the mode choice for non-commuting trips outside the neighborhood, frequency of public transport use, the attractiveness of shops, and monthly income
While there are similarities in some significant variables, the two Binary Logistic (BL) models confirm that differences in travel behavior, socioeconomic characteristics, and the perception of residents probably have an impact on the neighborhood effect in the two different types of the neighborhood

Summary

Introduction

Urban sprawl is defined as a specific urban form where development areas are characterized by single use-zoning, reduced accessibility, and increased car dependency. Social activity in cities is critical to sustainable development and so it is important to know how neighborhoods can be self-sufficient. A large body of research has found that traditional neighborhoods with higher density, compact forms, a greater sense of identity, and social ties based on ethnicity or religion make a greater contribution to urban sustainability goals and are more self-sufficient [6,7,8,9]. The economic, social and physical characteristics of the built environment have an impact on the capacity of a neighborhood to meet the needs of residents and are associated with a sense of belonging and social cohesion. Jacob (1961) explored the impacts of mixed land use in neighborhood structure and design on the reinforcement of a sense of community

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