Sustainable Urban Renewal Research Articles

Applicability of TransMilenio Bus Rapid Transit System of Bogotá, Colombia, to the United States

The TransMilenio of Bogotá, Colombia, is the highest-capacity bus rapid transit (BRT) system in the world and one of the best examples of a high-level BRT system. It demonstrates what BRT can achieve if high-capacity design features and operating characteristics are provided. This paper highlights the different capabilities of BRT as demonstrated by the TransMilenio and assesses the extent to which these capabilities are applicable to BRT operations in the United States. A series of observations is made in relation to the topics of passenger capacity, capital cost-effectiveness, achievement of modal shift objectives, urban renewal, business and institutional models, and politics. The paper concludes by discussing the various issues related to the replication of the Bogotá model in the United States. Perhaps the central lesson to be learned from Bogotá is that BRT is capable of playing a role in the achievement of much wider objectives, such as sustainable mobility and urban renewal, when implemented as part of a holistic package of integrated strategies. Committing to the provision of a network of BRT routes gives the city the opportunity to magnify the mobility and urban renewal benefits from corridor level to the citywide level. The relatively low capital costs that have made this possible, within a relatively short time frame, should also be of interest to U.S. cities.

Energy efficiency and low-carbon technologies in urban renewal

Buildings belong to the most cost-effective sectors where carbon dioxide (CO2) reductions can be achieved, and urban regeneration offers a good intervention point for switching to sustainable fuel sources, as changes in energy infrastructure can be coupled with other construction, thus decreasing the cost. However, the potential energy savings that are feasible do not match the more ambitious policy targets. Based on case studies in the Netherlands, obstacles are identified in the context of urban renewal that need to be overcome if energy efficiency measures are to be implemented and space heating replaced with low-carbon technologies. The current free-market public policy instruments have not managed to address the obstacles identified in the case studies due to poor market signals, costs and payback periods, risks, and a lack of leadership on environmental targets and policies on sustainable urban renewal. The potential for stronger government intervention is examined for the effectiveness in reducing both energy consumption and CO2 generation. Legislation could produce a certain policy outcome in terms of CO2 reduction in urban renewal in the Netherlands if compliance and legitimacy are ensured, but policy consideration is also required to account for the dilemma of low-income households and the rebound effects associated with occupant behaviours. Les bâtiments appartiennent à l'un des secteurs les plus rentables où il est possible de réaliser des réductions de CO2 et où la rénovation urbaine permet de passer à des sources de combustibles durables, les modifications apportées aux infrastructures énergétiques pouvant être couplées avec d'autres constructions, ce qui en diminue le coût. Toutefois, les économies qu'il est possible de réaliser au niveau de l'énergie ne correspondent pas aux objectifs politiques plus ambitieux. Des études de cas menées aux Pays-Bas ont permis d'identifier, dans le contexte du renouveau urbain, des obstacles qu'il faut surmonter si l'on veut mettre en œuvre des mesures d'efficacité énergétique et si l'on veut remplacer le mode actuel de chauffage des locaux par des technologies à faible dégagement de CO2. Jusqu'à présent, les instruments de la politique publique libérale n'ont pas permis de renverser ces obstacles pour les raisons suivantes: faibles signaux du marché, coûts et périodes de récupération, risques et manque de leadership en matière d'objectifs environnementaux et de politique concernant la rénovation urbaine durable. Cet article examine les possibilités d'un interventionnisme plus fort de la part des autorités pour améliorer la réduction à la fois de la consommation d'énergie et de la production de CO2. La législation pourrait produire quelques résultats en termes de réduction du CO2 dans la rénovation urbaine aux Pays-Bas si l'on garantit la compatibilité et la légitimité; mais il faut également prendre en considération les questions de politique et tenir compte de l'impasse que constituent les foyers à faibles revenus et les effets de rebond associés au comportement des occupants. Mots clés: patrimoine immobilier, réduction de CO2, efficacité énergétique, logements, politique publique, rénovation, rénovation urbaine, Pays-Bas

The Sureuro Gaming Exercise: designing a game for sustainable refurbishment by housing companies

The Sureuro Gaming Exercise (SGE) is a management game designed to show managers of housing companies how sustainable urban renewal involves organisational change in addition to different operational decisions. This paper presents how the SGE has been set up to help managers of housing companies make sustainable design choices at operational, tactical and strategic level. In the development of the game a paradoxical choice has been made: to communicate the complex set of lessons about designing sustainable refurbishment plans, a well-structured game has been developed, while the design of sustainable refurbishment plans requires an open approach to planning and decision-making.

Collaborative Decisionmaking for Sustainable Urban Renewal Projects: A Simulation – Gaming Approach

Differences in stakeholders' perceptions, lack of commitment, unused knowledge, and interfering, ineffective, measures are just some of the problems encountered in sustainable urban development projects. Collaborative decisionmaking approaches tackle these problems by creating a shared understanding of the problems faced and of ways to address them. The authors explore how the combined application of two techniques, a decision-support tool and a simulation game, can support decisionmaking for sustainable urban development. The techniques are applied in decision-making for real and in fictional sustainable urban renewal projects. Benefits and challenges of this combined approach are discussed based on experiences in seven applications. The main finding is that the use of the decision-support tool combined with the simulation–gaming procedure can support agenda setting and help create a shared understanding of problems and potential solutions in the field of sustainable urban renewal.

An Effective Project Management-Based Application Model for Sustainable Urban Renewal in Hong Kong

In this paper, we describe how a project management-based application model was designed to implement sustainable urban renewal projects in Hong Kong. The model was based on project organizational structure, team structure, attributes of team members, stakeholder management, communication, and information technology enablers. We conducted studies of other local and international urban renewal cases to verify and fine-tune the project management model identified in this paper. From our study, we conclude that the model used in Hong Kong can improve the efficiency and effectiveness of urban renewal project implementation. Our findings e also provide a foundation for applying the model at other locations, after taking into account the respective environments of these other locations.

Predicting Patronage Behaviors in a Sustainable Retail Environment

This study investigated consumer patronage (i.e., shopping and making purchases) at Recreational Equipment Inc. (REI), specifically examining consumer response to REI’s incorporation of sustainable design principles at their Denver flagship store. Data were collected using a consumer intercept survey at the Denver REI store ( n = 186). Of particular interest was the role of store atmospherics—including sustainable store design, historic preservation, and urban renewal efforts—in shaping consumers’ future intentions to patronize REI Denver. Consumers’ intentions to patronize REI were modeled using the classic belief-attitude-behavior intention model (i.e., attitude and subjective norm) based upon the theory of reasoned action, and an extended model that included variables external to the theory. Findings suggest that, when used to predict consumer patronage behaviors, the classic belief-attitudebehavior intention model should be extended to include retail characteristics, notably store atmospherics and merchandise assortment; a social context or social identity variable such as consumer lifestyle orientation; and demographics.

Combining GDSS and Gaming for Decision Support

Both gaming and group (decision) support systems (GDSS) are frequently used to support decision-making and policymaking in multi-actor settings. Despite the fact that there are a number of ways in which gaming and GDSS can be used in a complementary manner, there are only sporadic examples of their combined use. No systematic overview or framework exists in which GDSS are related to the functions of gaming or vice versa. In this article, we examine, why, how and for what purpose GDSS can be used to enrich and improve gaming simulation for decision support, and vice versa. In addition to a review of examples found in the literature, four games are discussed where we combined gaming and GDSS for complex decision making in a multi actor context: incodelta, a game about transportation corridors; infrastratego, a game about a liberalizing electricity market; containers a drift, a game about the planning of a container terminal, and; dubes, a game about sustainable urban renewal. Based on the literature and these four experiences, a classification is presented of (at least) four ways in which GDSS and gaming can be used in a complementary or even mutually corrective, manner: the use of GDSS for game design, for game evaluation, for game operation and the use of gaming for research, testing and training of GDSS.