Measuring urban sprawl in Beijing with geo-spatial indices

Concerning about the rapid urban growth in recent China, this study takes Beijing as a case and puts forward that urban sprawl can be measured from spatial configuration, urban growth efficiency and external impacts, and then develops a geo-spatial indices system for measuring sprawl, a total of 13 indicators. In order to calculate these indices, different sources data are selected, including land use maps, former land use planning, land price and floor-area-ratio samples, digitized map of the highways and city centers, population and GDP statistical data, etc. Various GIS spatial analysis methods are used to spatialize these indices into 100m × 100m cells. Besides, an integrated urban sprawl index is calculated by weight sum of these 13 indices. The application result indicates that geo-spatial indices system can capture most of the typical features and interior differentia of urban sprawl. Construction land in Beijing has kept fast growing with large amount, low efficiency and disordered spatial configuration, indicating a typical sprawling tendency. The following specific sprawl features are identified by each indicator: (1) typical spatial configuration of sprawling: obvious fragmentation and irregularity of landscape due to unsuccessful enforcement of land use planning, unadvisable pattern of typical discontinuous development, strip development and leapfrog development; (2) low efficiency of sprawl: low development density, low population density and economic output in newly developed area; and (3) negative impacts on agriculture, environment and city life. According to the integrated sprawl index, the sprawling amount in the northern part is larger than that in the southern, but the sprawling extent is in converse case; most sprawling area include the marginal area of the near suburbs and the area between highways, etc. Four sprawling patterns are identified: randomly expansion at urban fringe, strip development along or between highways, scattered development of industrial land, leapfrog development of urban residence and industrial area.

[1]  R. Lathrop,et al.  Land resource impact indicators of urban sprawl , 2003 .

[2]  He Chunyang,et al.  City Expansion Model of Metropolitan Area in China:a Case Study of Beijing , 2003 .

[3]  A. Nelson.  Comparing states with and without growth management Analysis based on indicators with policy implications , 1999 .

[4]  Zhang Zhen-shi.  Spatial Characteristics of Suburbanization and Its Developing Strategies in Beijing , 2002 .

[5]  Jiang Nan,et al.  DYNAMICS OF LANDSCAPE ECOLOGY IN NANJING CITY REVEALED BY RS AND GIS , 2005 .

[6]  Liu Sheng,et al.  Spatial Patterns and Dynamic Mechanisms of Urban Land Use Growth , 2002 .

[7]  Xiao Jie,et al.  Analysis on urban land use sprawl by using GIS:the case of Shijiazhuang City,China , 2003 .

[8]  Xu Han-qiu,et al.  URBAN EXPANSION AND ITS DRIVING FORCE ANALYSIS USING REMOTE SENSED DATA——A CASE OF XIAMEN CITY , 2005 .

[9]  Guo Da-zhi,et al.  Research on spatial differentiation of urban growth using multi-temporal landsat thematic mapper satellite remote sensing images , 2004 .

[10]  G. Galster,et al.  Wrestling Sprawl to the Ground: Defining and measuring an elusive concept , 2001 .

[11]  A. Downs.  The Bigpicture: How America's Cities Are Growing , 1998 .

[12]  R. Ewing,et al.  Measuring Sprawl and Its Transportation Impacts , 2003 .

[13]  R. Ewing,et al.  MEASURING SPRAWL AND ITS IMPACT , 2002 .

[14]  R. Ewing.  Is Los Angeles-Style Sprawl Desirable? , 1997 .

[15]  R. Burchell,et al.  The Evolution of the Sprawl Debate in the United States , 1999 .

[16]  Ma Yong-gang,et al.  Urban Sprawl Pattern and Spatial Features of rümqi City during the Last 15 Years , 2006 .

[17]  Jeffrey D. Kline,et al.  Comparing states with and without growth management analysis based on indicators with policy implications comment , 2000 .

[18]  José I. Barredo,et al.  Are European Cities Becoming Dispersed? A Comparative Analysis of 15 European Urban Areas , 2006 .