Document Type : Research Paper
Authors
1 Professor of Urban Planning, Urban Planning Faculty, University of Tehran
2 Ph.D. in Urban Planning, School of Urban Planning, College of Fine Arts, University of Tehran
Abstract
The analysis of the casual relationship between built environments and travel behavior has been a key issue in the literature on transportation and planning. Residential self-selection is an issue that requires greater elaboration in investigations of built environments and travel behavior. It suggests that people choose their neighborhoods according to their travel attitudes and preferences. In other words, people who prefer to walk more decide to reside in walkable neighborhoods. Therefore, people walk more because they like to walk. Hence, residential self-selection, which refers to people’s propensity to choose where to live, is based on their travel attitudes. It is therefore essential to explore the impacts of built environments on travel behavior given the roles of travel attitudes, neighborhood preferences, and socio-demographic characteristics in explanation of the relationship. In this paper, structural equation modeling was applied to specify the extent to which the observed patterns of travel behavior could be attributed to the residential built environment, through investigation of the relationship between the built environment and the frequency of non-work travel involving walks in three neighborhoods with different land development patterns in Tehran, Iran. With an identification of the direct and indirect impacts of the factors effective on travel behavior, the following hypotheses were made. 1) If a built-environment element affects travel behavior or another factor directly or indirectly, it has a causal relationship with travel behavior. 2) If the travel attitudes or neighborhood preferences affect the built environment, self-selection could be understood as confounding the casual relationship between the built environment and travel behavior. For testing the above hypotheses, data were collected from 273 questionnaires distributed in three neighborhoods: Moniriye (as a traditional neighborhood), Golestan (as an automobile-oriented neighborhood), and Bime (as a conventional neighborhood). Using exploratory factor analysis, the aspects of built environments were extracted as follows: residential environment characteristics, highway accessibility, public transport accessibility, destination diversity and accessibility, density, and residence preferences. The latter refers to residents’ accessibility preferences/priorities if they wish to move to a new neighborhood. Moreover, the factors effective on travel attitudes, as elicited by exploratory factor analysis, were found to include favoring means of transport other than private cars, dependent on private cars, reducing travel, and favoring private cars. After the specification of the domains of built environment, accessibility preferences/priorities, and travel attitudes, structural equation modeling was applied to identify the relative and casual relationships between the built environment and travel behavior in the three neighborhoods. The evidence from the car-oriented and conventional neighborhoods indicated the causality of the relationship between the built environment and travel behavior. In the traditional neighborhood, however, travel attitudes and neighborhood preferences were found to influence travel behavior directly and indirectly. Nevertheless, the overall comparative assessment of the direct/indirect impacts on travel behavior in the three examined neighborhoods demonstrated that the built environment elements had casual effects on the travel behavior involving walks. For instance, destination diversity and accessibility had direct and indirect impacts on travel behavior in all the three neighborhoods. It could be concluded that enhancement of diversity and public transport accessibility and reduction of highway accessibility played more prominent roles in non-motorized travel behavior. If cities adopt land use policies offering more options to utilize non-motorized means of transport, therefore, many residents would tend to welcome the idea.
Keywords
Main Subjects
- Boarnet, M.G., & Crane, R. (2001). The influence of land use on travel behavior: specification and estimation strategies. Transportation Research A, 35 (9), 823– 845.
- Boer, R., Zheng, Y., Overton, A., Ridgeway, G., & Cohen, D. (2007). Neighborhood Design and Walking Trips in Ten U.S. Metropolitan Areas. American Journal of Preventive Medicine, 32(4), 298-304.
- Cao, X., & Fan, Y. (2012). Exploring the influences of density on travel behavior using propensity score matching. Environment and Planning B: Planning and Design 39(3), 459–470.
- Cao, X., Handy, S.L., & Mokhtarian, P.L. (2006a). Neighborhood design and vehicle type choice: Evidence from Northern California. Transportation Research Part D 11, 133–145.
- Cao, X., Handy, S.L., & Mokhtarian, P.L. (2006b). The influences of the built environment and residential selfselection on pedestrian behavior: evidence from Austin, TX. Transportation 33(1), 1-20.
- Cao, X., Mokhtarian, P.L., & Handy, S.L. (2007a). Cross-sectional and quasi-panel explorations of the connection between the built environment and auto ownership. Environ. Plan. A, 39, 830–847
- Cao, X., Mokhtarian, P.L., & Handy, S.L. (2007b). Do changes in neighborhood characteristics lead to changes in travel behavior? A structural equations modeling approach. Transportation, 34, 535-556.
- Cao, X., Mokhtarian, P.L., & Handy, S.L. (2009a). Examining the Impacts of Residential Self-Selection on Travel Behaviour: A Focus on Empirical Findings. Transport Reviews, 29(3), 359 - 395.
- Cao, X., Mokhtarian, P.L., & Handy, S.L. (2009b). The relationship between the built environment and nonwork travel: A case study of Northern California. Transportation Research Part A, 43, 548 - 559.
- Cao, X., Mokhtarian, P.L., & Handy, S.L. (2010). Neighborhood Design and the Accessibility of the Elderly: An Empirical Analysis in Northern California. International Journal of Sustainable Transportation, 4, 347–371.
- Cervero, R. (2002). Built environments and mode choice: toward a normative framework. Transportation Research Part D, 7, 265–284.
- Cervero, R., & Kockelman, K. (1997). Travel demand and the 3Ds: Density, diversity, and design. Transportation Research D, 2(3), 199–219.
- Cervero, R., Sarmiento, O.L., Jacoby, E., Fernando, L., Neiman, A., & Gomez, L.F. (2009). Influences of built environments on walking and cycling: lessons from Bogotá. Int. J. Sustain. Transp. 3 (4), 203–226.
- Circella, G., Mokhtarian, P. L. & Handy, S. L. (2008), Land use, attitudes, and travel behavior relationships: a cross-sectional structural equations model for Northern California. Transportation Research Board 87th Annual Meeting Transportation Research Board.
- Crane, R. (2000). The influence of urban form on travel: an interpretative review. Journal of Planning Literature,15(1), 3–23.
- Crane, R., & Crepeau, R, (1998), Does Neighborhood Design Influence Travel? A Behavioral Analysis of Travel Diary and GIS Data. Transport. D, 3(4), 225-238.
- Frank, L., Bradley, M., Kavage, S., Chapman, J., & Lawton, T.k. (2008). Urban form, travel time, and cost relationships with tour complexity and mode choice. Transportation, 35, 37–54.
- Greenwald, M. J. (2006). The relationship between land use and intrazonal trip making behaviors: Evidence and implications. Transportation Research Part D, 11, 432–446
- Handy, S. L., & Clifton, K. J. (2001). Local shopping as a strategy for reducing automobile travel. Transportation, 28, 317-346.
- Handy, S., Cao, X., & Mokhtarian, P. (2005). Correlation or causality between the built environment and travel behavior? Evidence from Northern California. Transport. Res. D, 10(6), 427–444.
- Handy, S., Cao, X., & Mokhtarian, P. (2006). Self-Selection in the Relationship between the Built Environment and Walking. Journal of the American Planning Association, 72(1), 55-74.
- Khattak, A.J., & Rodriguez, R. (2005). Travel behavior in neo-traditional neighborhood developments: a case study in USA. Transportation Research Part A, 39, 481–500.
- Kockelman, K. M. (1997). Travel behavior as a function of accessibility, land use mixing and land use balance: Evidence from the San Francisco Bay Area. Transportation Research Record, 1607, 116-125.
- Krizek, K. (2003). Residential relocation and changes in urban travel: does neighborhood-scale urban form matter? Journal of the American Planning Association, 69(3), 265–281.
- Lin, T., Wang, D., & Guanz, X. (2016). The built environment, travel attitude, and travel behavior: Residential self-selection or residential determination? Journal of Transport Geography 65, 111–122.
- Lund, H. (2006). Reasons for living in a transit-oriented development, and associated transit use. J. Am. Plan. Assoc. 73(3), 357-366.
- Næss, P. (2006). Accessibility, Activity Participation and Location of Activities: Exploring the Links between Residential Location and Travel Behavior. Urban Studies, 43(3), 627–652.
- Rodriguez, D. A., & Joo, J. (2004). The relationship between non-motorized mode choice and the local physical environment. Transportation Research D, 9(2), 151–173.
- Schwanen, T., & Mokhtarian, P.L. (2007). Attitudes toward travel and land use and choice of residential neighborhood type: evidence from the San Francisco bay area. Hous. Pol. Debate 18 (1), 171–207.
- Zhang, M. (2004), The Role of Land Use in Travel Mode Choice, Evidence from Boston and Hong Kong. Journal of the American Planning Association, 70(3), 344-363.
- Zebardast, E., & Baghernezhad, E. (2019). Analyzing the relationship between land use and travel behavior in Bime, Moniriye and Golestan districts. HONAR-HA-YE-ZIBA, 23(4), 95-106. [in Persian]
- Zhou, B., & K. Kockelman. (2008). Self-selection in home choice: Use of treatment effects in evaluating the relationship between the built environment and travel behavior. Transportation Research Record, 2077, 54–61.
)