Urban Planning and Transport indicators: a comparative analysis of three Brazilian experiences

Transport is a critical system in the city, which, through providing access to essential activities, enables diverse women and men, girls and boys to “appropriate” their right to the city and to realize a fully rounded and substantive urban citizenship. Yet, despite decades of work on gender in urban development and urban planning, mainstream transport planning still remains largely untouched by debates on diversity and difference in cities. The tendency to focus on the economic and now environmental aspects continues to dominate urban transport. In contrast, concerns for the identity of urban residents or “users” are addressed through, and ultimately marginalized to, “the social” and distributional aspects of urban transport planning. This paper argues that the distributional aspects of transport are cross cutting, and go beyond the disaggregation of transport users by social relations such as class, gender, age and ethnicity. The social identities of transport “users” are deeply embedded in social relations and urban practices, the latter ranging from the everyday lives of people to urban policies and planning. Furthermore, in transport, these social relations are played out in public space, with implications for how diverse women and men, girls and boys are able to exercise individual and collective “travel choice” and negotiate access to essential activities in the city. Recognition of these processes, as reflected in the “deep distribution” of the transport system, is essential to reframing the notion of “travel choice” and, ultimately, to urban transport and urban planning that is committed to social justice in cities.

BackgroundCities are an important driving force to implement the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and the New Urban Agenda. The SDGs provide an operational framework to consider urbanization globally, while providing local mechanisms for action and careful attention to closing the gaps in the distribution of health gains. While health and well-being are explicitly addressed in SDG 3, health is also present as a pre condition of SDG 11, that aims at inclusive, safe, resilient and sustainable cities.Health in All Policies (HiAP) is an approach to public policy across sectors that systematically takes into account the health implications of decisions, seeks synergies, and avoids harmful health impacts in order to improve population health and health equity. HiAP is key for local decision-making processes in the context of urban policies to promote public health interventions aimed at achieving SDG targets. HiAPs relies heavily on the use of scientific evidence and evaluation tools, such as health impact assessments (HIAs). HIAs may include city-level quantitative burden of disease, health economic assessments, and citizen and other stakeholders’ involvement to inform the integration of health recommendations in urban policies.The Barcelona Institute for Global Health (ISGlobal)‘s Urban Planning, Environment and Health Initiative provides an example of a successful model of translating scientific evidence into policy and practice with regards to sustainable and healthy urban development. The experiences collected through ISGlobal’s participation implementing HIAs in several cities worldwide as a way to promote HiAP are the basis for this analysis.AimThe aim of this article is threefold: to understand the links between social determinants of health, environmental exposures, behaviour, health outcomes and urban policies within the SDGs, following a HiAP rationale; to review and analyze the key elements of a HiAP approach as an accelerator of the SDGs in the context of urban and transport planning; and to describe lessons learnt from practical implementation of HIAs in cities across Europe, Africa and Latin-America.MethodsWe create a comprehensive, urban health related SDGs conceptual framework, by linking already described urban health dimensions to existing SDGs, targets and indicators. We discuss, taking into account the necessary conditions and steps to conduct HiAP, the main barriers and opportunities within the SDGs framework. We conclude by reviewing HIAs in a number of cities worldwide (based on the experiences collected by co-authors of this publication), including city-level quantitative burden of disease and health economic assessments, as practical tools to inform the integration of health recommendations in urban policies.ResultsA conceptual framework linking SDGs and urban and transportplanning, environmental exposures, behaviour and health outcomes, following a HiAP rationale, is designed. We found at least 38 SDG targets relevant to urban health, corresponding to 15 SDGs, while 4 important aspects contained in our proposed framework were not present in the SDGs (physical activity, noise, quality of life or social capital). Thus, a more comprehensive HiAP vision within the SDGs could be beneficial.Our analysis confirmed that the SDGs framework provides an opportunity to formulate and implement policies with a HiAP approach. Three important aspects are highlighted: 1) the importance of the intersectoral work and health equity as a cross-cutting issue in sustainable development endeavors; 2) policy coherence, health governance, and stakeholders’ participation as key issues; and 3) the need for high quality data.HIAs are a practical tool to implement HiAP. Opportunities and barriers related to the political, legal and health governance context, the capacity to inform policies in other sectors, the involvement of different stakeholders, and the availability of quality data are discussed based on our experience. Quantitative assessments can provide powerful data such as: estimates of annual preventable morbidity and disability-adjusted life-years (DALYs) under compliance with international exposure recommendations for physical activity, exposure to air pollution, noise, heat, and access to green spaces; the associated economic impacts in health care costs per year; and the number of preventable premature deaths when improvements in urban and transport planning are implemented. This information has been used to support the design of policies that promote cycling, walking, public, zero and low-emitting modes of transport, and the provision of urban greening or healthy public open spaces in Barcelona (e.g. Urban Mobility, Green Infrastructure and Biodiversity Plans, or the Superblocks’s model), the Bus Rapid Transit and Open Streets initiatives in several Latin American cities or targeted SDGs assessments in Morocco.ConclusionsBy applying tools such as HIA, HiAP can be implemented to inform and improve transport and urban planning to achieve the 2030 SDG Agenda. Such a framework could be potentially used in cities worldwide, including those of less developed regions or countries. Data availability, taking into account equity issues, strenghtening the communication between experts, decision makers and citizens, and the involvement of all major stakeholders are crucial elements for the HiAP approach to translate knowledge into SDG implementation.

Global rates of urbanisation are on the rise. By 2050 around 70% of the ten billion global population is expected to be living in cities. Whilst cities are centres of education, wealth creation, innovation and progress they are simultaneously characterized by pollution, congestion, noise, heat and overcrowding, adversely impacting human health on a global scale. Strategic and comprehensive urban and transport planning and policy that integrates health can ameliorate some of these negative impacts. The evidence base for how we should be building our cities of the future is there. Nonetheless, current urban and transport planning fails to optimise health outcomes. This chapter discusses the barriers and enablers to effectively integrating health evidence into urban and transport planning decision making. These barriers are discussed under the themes of (1) differing understandings of health between sectors (2) differing understandings of evidence and difficulties around evidence translation (3) governance and politics and (4) institutional context. The second part of the chapter puts forward solutions to overcoming these barriers and suggests that enabling factors reside in improving communication and collaboration across sectors and disciplines. Such collaboration is likely to be facilitated by changes both to the institutional context in which decisions are made and to the way research is developed and communicated.

Enhancing urban public space through appropriate sustainable mobility policies. A multi-criteria analysis approach

The current zoning system involves stringent categorization of land use, mostly for residence, commerce, and industry. Additionally, it determines the type, building coverage ratio, and floor area ratio of a building according to categories, thus restricting land utilization. Recently, the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, and Transport announced the “Plans for Urban Planning Innovation.” It mainly increases the autonomy of spaces by introducing urban innovation zones, complex use zones, and mixed use zones for urban planning facilities to mitigate space regulations. First, the urban innovation zones are designated to develop creativity and innovation in urban spaces. These zones fully reorganize the current minimum site regulation zones and facilitate free space utilizations. This is because there is no application of permissible building, building coverage ratio, and floor area ratio regulations according to the zoning system. Additionally, there are few limitations on the zoning and planning contents. Those who make a proposal to designate and plan an urban innovation zone can obtain the business enforcement qualification based on the Urban Development Act to vitalize private participation. Next, the complex use zones aim to create spaces featuring the convergence of various urban functions including residence, commerce, industry, education, culture, and medicine. Such zones can accommodate diverse facilities merely through zone designation without a complex procedure to change land use and increase building coverage ratio and floor area ratio up to the legal maximum limit for a given use. Third, the mixed use zones for urban planning facilities alleviate the restrictions on buildings, building coverage ratios, and floor area ratios at an urban planning facility site for the advanced and complex functions of urban planning facilities. Such zones facilitate non-urban planning facilities and alleviate the building coverage ratio and floor area ratio two-fold. Finally, the urban innovation zones and complex use zones of the three new zone types are designated through a space restructuring plan, which is a regulation covering special cases based on the old urban planning procedure. Although it changes both the basic urban and country plan and the urban and county management plan, it disappears after the determination and announcement of an urban restructuring plan. Development gains from the designation of urban innovation zones, complex use zones, and mixed use zones for urban planning facilities will be redeemed by the obligatory installation of public facilities based on Article 52, Clause 2 of the National Land Planning Act.

BackgroundThe majority of people live in cities and urbanization is continuing worldwide. Cities have long been known to be society’s predominant engine of innovation and wealth creation, yet they are also a main source of pollution and disease.MethodsWe conducted a review around the topic urban and transport planning, environmental exposures and health and describe the findings.ResultsWithin cities there is considerable variation in the levels of environmental exposures such as air pollution, noise, temperature and green space. Emerging evidence suggests that urban and transport planning indicators such as road network, distance to major roads, and traffic density, household density, industry and natural and green space explain a large proportion of the variability. Personal behavior including mobility adds further variability to personal exposures, determines variability in green space and UV exposure, and can provide increased levels of physical activity.Air pollution, noise and temperature have been associated with adverse health effects including increased morbidity and premature mortality, UV and green space with both positive and negative health effects and physical activity with many health benefits. In many cities there is still scope for further improvement in environmental quality through targeted policies. Making cities ‘green and healthy’ goes far beyond simply reducing CO2 emissions. Environmental factors are highly modifiable, and environmental interventions at the community level, such as urban and transport planning, have been shown to be promising and more cost effective than interventions at the individual level. However, the urban environment is a complex interlinked system.Decision-makers need not only better data on the complexity of factors in environmental and developmental processes affecting human health, but also enhanced understanding of the linkages to be able to know at which level to target their actions. New research tools, methods and paradigms such as geographical information systems, smartphones, and other GPS devices, small sensors to measure environmental exposures, remote sensing and the exposome paradigm together with citizens observatories and science and health impact assessment can now provide this information.ConclusionWhile in cities there are often silos of urban planning, mobility and transport, parks and green space, environmental department, (public) health department that do not work together well enough, multi-sectorial approaches are needed to tackle the environmental problems. The city of the future needs to be a green city, a social city, an active city, a healthy city.Electronic supplementary materialThe online version of this article (doi:10.1186/s12940-016-0108-1) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

In the Anthropocene age, human activity will determine the course of the planet, and most of this activity will occur in cities. Public health concerns formed the foundation urban planning. In the 21st century, the disciplines drifted apart, leaving a legacy of environments and exposures detrimental to people and the planet. Current global urbanization offers an unprecedented opportunity to rethink the way we design and live in cities. Including health transversally to reframe urban resilience is critical to achieve SDG11. Methods: Health evidence often fails to reach those responsible for planning, and is poorly integrated into many urban platforms. In response, ISGlobal created the Urban Planning, Environment and Health Initiative (UPEH). UPEH offers an organizational model to generate impact in policy and society through research. Using Barcelona as a case study, we explore how evidence can be translated to promote healthy urban environments. Results: The UPEH strategy works with government agencies in Barcelona to bridge gaps between theory and practice by: building technical capacity, creating transdisciplinary communities, engaging with urban and transport planning sector partners and translational events and media. Over the past two years, UPEH has developed collaborations with five government agencies. We are conducting health impact assessments of interventions such as the Superblock, evaluating local environmental exposures, offering trainings and creating tools to bring health criteria into urban and transport planning processes and policy (i.e. PMUs). Challenges identified include: aligning political and research cycles, breaking down silos, creating value for translational work within academia and understanding governance mechanisms and the influence of acquired rights such as private motorized transport. Conclusions: Urban and transport planning are fundamental public health interventions. Health evidence can be used to create paradigm shifts and policy change. Novel approaches such as citizen science and health impact assessments are key to addressing challenges.

The proportion of people living in cities is increasing in developed as well as developing countries. Besides the positive effects of urbanisation there are also negative impacts on human health, for example due to heat islands, air pollution and noise. Health is of high importance for the citizens, and in our societies the awareness for health impacts is increasing due to more welfare. However urban planning as well as transport planning are not considering health impacts sufficiently, so far. Consequently, a sustainable, health-oriented and integrated urban and transport planning approach is urgently needed to provide a high quality of life in a healthy urban environment. Upcoming changes in vehicle technology and transport services will induce and require new urban forms. The growing individual interest in improving the personal health situation will furthermore contribute to the high demand for an integrated approach. In order to derive adequate processes and measures in the field of urban and transport planning to improve human health and environmental conditions, the interdependencies between urban form, transport system and health are elaborated.

Most micromobility research is conducted among users (their attitudes, behavior or travel trajectories). The findings are of significant value and utility in the creation of mobility patterns, shared micromobility offers, operating conditions, and the use of micromobility big data. The significance and efficacy of micromobility within Sustainable Urban Mobility Plans is often underestimated. Undoubtedly, the incorporation of micromobility into urban planning can lead to tangible environmental benefits, including a reduction in traffic congestion, greenhouse gas emissions, and improved air quality. Consequently, Sustainable Urban Mobility Plans and micromobility represent a significant research topic, given their importance for practitioners. This article aims to examine and identify the levels of possible integration pertaining to micromobility within Sustainable Urban Mobility Plans in the context of greening transport systems in cities. The following were identified with regard to levels of integration and future research directions: role of micromobility and Sustainable Urban Mobility Plans in climate change; types of micromobility in a sustainable environment; availability of data and information in the context of planning and promoting green mobility patterns (for researchers and practitioners); formal and legal requirements indicating the need to secure users (road safety of people and their personal data); integration of micromobility and public transportation as a good practice for a sustainable city trips. The initial examination of the literature revealed that this is a relatively narrow research area. Information about the integration between Sustainable Urban Mobility Plans and micromobility may be found in expert reports from various organizations, research funding institutions and city websites. The sources of information are outlined in the paper, as well as future research possibilities. Moreover, the outlined five levels of integration serve as a reminder of the necessity for an interdisciplinary approach to the successful implementation of micromobility as a key factor in Sustainable Urban Mobility Plans.

Sustainable development, urban planning, mobility, and transport planning, integrated within the context of sustainable urban mobility, have been central themes in both scientific and applied spheres over the past few decades. In port cities, it becomes particularly essential to tackle sustainability issues given the pollution and noise emanating from ships and other port-related activities. To meet mobility and transportation sustainability needs in the port area, a port should implement measures aligned with a sustainable urban mobility planning (SUMP) approach. However, many ports have thus far achieved limited results in this direction due to the absence of an approach to defining sustainable mobility solutions based on the SUMP approach for an urban area associated with the given port. The overall aim of this paper is to support the development of territorial SUMP for port areas by proposing a methodology that identifies and prioritizes sustainable mobility solutions tailored to a specific port area. The proposed methodology is applied in the Port of Bar (Montenegro) through an appropriate case study. In this case study, the methodological steps are systematically followed, resulting in the practical implementation of the selected mobility solution: the use of a hybrid bus for internal employee transportation within the port area. The undertaken case study underscores the simplicity, practical applicability, and adaptability of the proposed methodology.

With the further acceleration of China's urbanization process, atmospheric pollution is increasing, and haze occurs frequently throughout the country, exposing a series of urban planning problems in China's urban development, which pose new challenges and requirements for the future development of urban planning. In view of the direct causal relationship between haze and urban planning and management, we can put forward new planning ideas by exploring the relationship between the spatial distribution of urban planning and haze, so as to clarify the focus and development strategy of urban planning in the haze era. The application of modern geographic information technology can optimize the level of urban planning management, thus realizing the goal of modern urban planning. Based on the remote sensing data of Anshan City in 2016, this study divided the functional areas of the city, analyzed the air quality data of the study area for four consecutive months from November 2016 to March 2017, and analyzed the impact of the landscape ecological planning pattern of Anshan City on the spatial distribution of haze through GIS spatial analysis technology. The research shows that the urban landscape pattern of Anshan has a very important impact on the formation of haze. Future urban planning should be based on the implementation and management of urban spatial layout planning, energy planning, road system planning, green space system planning, transportation planning and wind corridor planning. This study provides a scientific basis for urban haze governance.

As global urbanization accelerates, cities increasingly shape economic growth and environmental outcomes, making sustainable urban and transport planning critical. Sustainable city branding (SCB) is emerging as a strategic tool that not only enhances a city’s global competitiveness but actively drives urban sustainability by integrating environmental, social, and economic dimensions aligned with the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). However, the direct link between SCB and transport planning remains largely unexplored, limiting actionable policy. This study introduces a novel conceptual framework connecting SCB with transport planning, positioning public transportation as a key lever for sustainable urban development. It identifies core interactions between city branding and sustainable mobility, proposes methodologies to evaluate SCB effectiveness, and addresses potential risks, challenges, and research gaps. A policy roadmap for decision-makers based on the framework is outlined. This roadmap is structured into three phases spanning a five-year program. In Phase 1, cities should lay the foundation by integrating SCB into municipal transport and sustainability plans and establishing measurable indicators aligned with the SDGs. Phase 2 focuses on engagement and experimentation, encouraging the creation of participatory branding platforms and the implementation of pilot projects, such as green mobility corridors or climate-resilient transit hubs. Finally, Phase 3 emphasizes monitoring and scaling, utilizing digital technologies for real-time tracking, evaluating pilot outcomes, and expanding successful initiatives based on key performance indicators, including ridership growth, carbon reduction, and citizen engagement. By linking SCB explicitly to transport planning and providing a concrete roadmap, this study offers a unique contribution to both urban sustainability research and practical policy-making, enabling cities to simultaneously strengthen their brand, enhance mobility, and achieve measurable sustainability outcomes.

Participatory quantitative health impact assessment of urban and transport planning in cities: A review and research needs

This study focuses on the development of mathematical modelling methods for transport and urban planning. The current research focuses on an innovative mathematical model for simultaneous calculation of passenger and transport flow intensity in urban agglomerations using a common transport graph. An assessment of the model limitation impact on the parameters of individual and public transportation systems in a city (urban agglomeration) is conducted. To verify the model, several experimental calculations are performed for the transport system of the St. Petersburg agglomeration. The model presented by the authors can be used in scientific research in urban and transport planning and in the development of design solutions in cities.

Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) changed the way planners present and operate with their projects. New visualisation tools have changed the ways projects and plans are presented and disseminated. However, the opportunities given by visualisation are not completely exploited in the professional practice. This is due to several bottlenecks which occur in the daily carrying out of activities. The paper is organised in three sections. The first one explains how visualisation can be an added value to the planning practice if it is organised and designed as a framework of information; conceiving the visualisation as a model, data can be managed and represented in order to provide information at different levels of expertise, allowing city plans to be analysed and understood before their realisation. The second section resumes the changes caused by the introduction of ICT within the daily practice; a comparison between pre-digital and digital approaches highlights current opportunities for implementing the communication values of plans and projects. The third part illustrates some examples of innovative visualisations in the urban and transport planning practice, showing a number of uses of visualisation to fit different purposes. The paper concludes this insight formulating the necessity for integrating the studies on visualisation coming from different disciplines into a scientific method that can be proposed as a guideline in building the images of urban and transport plans. This would be particularly useful for obtaining a more scientific approach in the choices of representation and visualisation of urban aspects.