Economic determinants of urban form: resulting trade-offs between active and sedentary forms of travel.

Economic factors have an impact on how the built environment is shaped, which in turn affects how we choose to travel. Regional transportation investment decisions are firmly rooted in economic "cost-benefit" trade-off considerations. The placement (central or outlying) and mode of transportation in which investments are made (transit, highway, sidewalks, or bikeways) influence where homes, businesses, schools, and other types of uses are located. Transportation investments create or limit access and establish a set of economic trade-offs that help determine if an area will be compact or dispersed, and mixed use or single use. Developers consider cost trade-offs between constructing connected street grids versus disconnected cul-de-sac networks, which determines if residents can walk to services and transit. Taken collectively, transportation investments and resulting land-use patterns determine if destinations are far apart or close together and linked with direct and safe sidewalks or bikeways. The end result is a built environment that determines whether walking and biking is feasible or perceived as more beneficial than driving or taking transit. This paper assesses (1) the economic forces that shape transportation investment decisions, (2) the economic impact of these investments on land use, and (3) how we as consumers choose to travel as a result of these transportation investment and land-use decisions.

[1]  Eric J. Miller,et al.  URBAN TRANSPORTATION PLANNING: A DECISION-ORIENTED APPROACH , 1984 .

[2]  A. Bauman,et al.  Environmental and policy interventions to promote physical activity. , 1998, American journal of preventive medicine.

[3]  S. Raudenbush,et al.  Relationship between Urban Sprawl and Physical Activity, Obesity, and Morbidity , 2003, American journal of health promotion : AJHP.

[4]  Lawrence D. Frank,et al.  Land Use and Transportation Interaction , 2000 .

[5]  Peter R. Stopher,et al.  Behavioural Travel Modelling , 1979, Behavioural Travel Modelling.

[6]  A. Bauman,et al.  Physical activity preferences, preferred sources of assistance, and perceived barriers to increased activity among physically inactive Australians. , 1997, Preventive medicine.

[7]  D. Shoup.  The High Cost of Free Parking , 1997 .

[8]  A. Moudon,et al.  Effects of Site Design on Pedestrian Travel in Mixed-Use, Medium-Density Environments , 1997 .

[9]  S. Handy.  Understanding the Link Between Urban Form and Nonwork Travel Behavior , 1995 .

[10]  W. Alonso.  Location And Land Use , 1964 .

[11]  Randall Crane,et al.  Cars and Drivers in the New Suburbs: Linking Access to Travel in Neotraditional Planning , 1994 .

[12]  S. Hanson,et al.  The Geography Of Urban Transportation , 1986 .

[13]  Reid Ewing,et al.  Travel and the Built Environment: A Synthesis , 2001 .

[14]  D. McFadden.  Quantitative Methods for Analyzing Travel Behaviour of Individuals: Some Recent Developments , 1977 .

[15]  L. Frank,et al.  Impacts of Mixed Use and Density on Utilization of Three Modes of Travel: Single-Occupant Vehicle, Transit, and Walking , 1994 .

[16]  Todd Alexander Litman,et al.  Transportation Cost and Benefit Analysis Techniques, Estimates and Implications Second Edition (2009) , 2003 .

[17]  Randall Crane,et al.  On Form versus Function: Will the New Urbanism Reduce Traffic, or Increase It? , 1995 .

[18]  Bruce W Landis,et al.  Modeling the Roadside Walking Environment: Pedestrian Level of Service , 2001 .

[19]  John P. Robinson,et al.  Time for Life: The Surprising Ways Americans Use Their Time , 1998 .

[20]  Martin A. Andresen,et al.  Obesity relationships with community design, physical activity, and time spent in cars. , 2004, American journal of preventive medicine.

[21]  A. Pisarski.  Commuting in America II: The Second National Report on Commuting Patterns and Trends , 1996 .

[22]  C. D. Harris,et al.  The Nature of Cities , 1945, The Urban Geography Reader.

[23]  John P. Robinson,et al.  Time for Life: The Surprising Ways Americans Use Their Time , 1998 .

[24]  P. Muller.  TRANSPORTATION AND URBAN FORM: STAGES IN THE SPATIAL EVOLUTION OF THE AMERICAN METROPOLIS , 1986 .

[25]  Lawrence D. Frank,et al.  Active transportation and physical activity: opportunities for collaboration on transportation and public health research , 2004 .

[26]  R B Noland,et al.  INDUCED TRAVEL: A REVIEW OF RECENT LITERATURE AND THE IMPLICATIONS FOR TRANSPORTATION AND ENVIRONMENTAL POLICY , 2000 .

[27]  A. Downs.  New Visions For Metropolitan America , 1994 .

[28]  J. Levine,et al.  A Choice-Based Rationale for Land Use and Transportation Alternatives , 2005 .

[29]  John R. Meyer,et al.  The Urban Transportation Problem , 1965 .

[30]  I. Vuori,et al.  Daily walking and cycling to work: their utility as health-enhancing physical activity. , 1998, Patient education and counseling.

[31]  A. Bauman,et al.  The descriptive epidemiology of a sedentary lifestyle in adult Australians. , 1992, International journal of epidemiology.

[32]  Vukan R Vuchic,et al.  Transportation for Livable Cities , 1999 .

[33]  Lawrence D. Frank,et al.  Health and Community Design: The Impact Of The Built Environment On Physical Activity , 2003 .

[34]  D. Myers,et al.  Current preferences and future demand for denser residential environments , 2001 .

[35]  J. Jacobs.  The Death and Life of Great American Cities , 1962 .

[36]  G. Hupkes.  THE LAW OF CONSTANT TRAVEL TIME AND TRIP-RATES , 1982 .

[37]  R. Sturm,et al.  The economics of physical activity: societal trends and rationales for interventions. , 2004, American journal of preventive medicine.

[38]  W. Whyte.  The social life of small urban spaces , 1980 .

[39]  Alex H. S. Harris,et al.  Spirituality and health: What’s the evidence and what’s needed? , 2002, Annals of behavioral medicine : a publication of the Society of Behavioral Medicine.