Walking in a New Inner-city Area: Evidence from a Berlin Case Study ( poster )

Abstract

European cities recently experience new growth. In terms of daily mobility this is good news for walking: the compact and mixed land use structures of inner-city areas promote the use of non-motorized transport modes. To satisfy the increasing demand of housing urban redevelopment projects emerge. While positive effects of compact and mixed land use structures on walking have been identified for ‘traditional’ neighborhoods, little knowledge exists about daily mobility in new inner-city areas. Therefore, this study analyzes travel behavior of residents who have recently moved to a new inner-city area. Taking the example of Berlin, a quantitative survey was conducted in a new inner-city area. The research area is mainly residential and accommodates different types of apartment buildings and terraced housing with garden. To characterize the residents and their daily mobility descriptive analysis were carried out in comparison with the population of the inner and outer city of Berlin. Moreover, a cluster analysis was conducted to identify different groups of travel behavior. This new inner-city area mainly attracts couples and families with high incomes. Car ownership is well above the average of Berlin; however, the residents make about one third of all trips by walking which is comparable to the population of the Berlin inner city. The cluster analysis reveals that even in a homogenous area in terms of population structure and the built environment residents differ widely with regard to daily mobility. Four travel behavior groups have been identified: residents with high shares of walking, cycling, driving, and public transport. In the context of residential location choice, they had different requirements. Residents with high shares of walking, for example, wanted to live in a child-friendly neighborhood with green space, preferably in a house with a garden. Overall, the study suggests that new inner-city areas provide good opportunities for active travel. Even households with high car ownership tend to walk for different trip purposes. Nonetheless, there are differences in travel behavior as well as in the motives for residential location choice. This emphasizes the need for group specific urban planning measures to enhance walking in new inner-city areas.