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- Info
Beyond density, mode choice, and single-purpose trips
| Author: |
Ewing, Reid |
| Date: |
1995 |
| Periodical: |
Transportation Quarterly. Lansdowne, VA: Eno Transportation Foundation, Inc. |
| Abstract: |
There are those who believe that land use patterns affect every aspect of household travel behavior, from trip rates to mode choices. They advocate compact development, urban villages, neo-traditional neighborhoods, pedestrian pockets, transit-oriented developments, mixed-use activity centers, and jobs-housing balance. On the other side of the issue is a small but influential group of skeptics who question whether land use patterns matter in this age of near-universal auto ownership, superhighways, and low-cost travel. They say that the land use-travel studies upon which the advocates rely fail to prove their point. Sure, households in dense cities make less use of automobiles and more use of alternative modes. But these households are also smaller and poorer than suburban households and therefore would make less use of automobiles wherever they lived. This study investigates the independent effects of land use on household travel behavior, controlling for sociodemographic differences among households. It appears that even in a sprawling sunbelt environment, land use patterns matter. However, their effect is not exactly as envisioned by the advocates. Accessibility to regional activities has much more effect on household travel patterns than does density or land use mix in the immediate area; accessibility has as much effect on the frequency and length of trips as the mode of travel; and these relationships can be best understood in terms of multi-purpose trip making. |
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