Abstract
Daily commuting is a significant cause of energy use in a new town. Available literature shows that there is a strong link between land use, socio-economic characteristics of people and travel demand. In this article, the parallel and interrelated influence of these factors on travel demand in a new town will be discussed. Land use in this research will be studied through main travel-generating uses (such as workplace, educational facility, shopping area and recreational facility) on local and regional scales and accessibility to main activity centres (such as neighbouring and distant towns and cities). Important socio-economic characteristics studied here are the number of wage earners, travel mode choice and travel behaviour in a household. The case study was done in Hashtgerd New Town, approximately 65 km west of Tehran on the route of the Tehran–Qazvin Freeway. Research tools used here are questionnaires, field trips and interviews. Statistical software (SPSS) was used for data entry and descriptive analysis. Based on 185 questionnaires from the New Town (each representative of one household) supported by interviews and reference to similar recent research, the results suggest that both land-use pattern and socio-economic characteristics influence travel demand. Land-use pattern was studied on small, middle-sized and large geographic scales. The study shows that on a middle to large scale, the location of the New Town in proximity to existing activity centres, which provide job opportunities for the inhabitants, would reduce the distances travelled daily for work. On a small to middle scale, a mixture of land uses to provide educational and shopping facilities will decrease the need for long-distance commuting. Among the socio-economic factors, car ownership rate, income and household composition and characteristics indicating the number of workers and students in a family could influence the distance travelled and mode of travel of each family member.
Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callMore From: International Journal of Urban Sustainable Development
Disclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
