Travel and the Built Environment
Top Cited Papers
- 11 May 2010
- journal article
- research article
- Published by Taylor & Francis Ltd in Journal of the American Planning Association
- Vol. 76 (3), 265-294
- https://doi.org/10.1080/01944361003766766
Abstract
Problem: Localities and states are turning to land planning and urban design for help in reducing automobile use and related social and environmental costs. The effects of such strategies on travel demand have not been generalized in recent years from the multitude of available studies. Purpose: We conducted a meta-analysis of the built environment-travel literature existing at the end of 2009 in order to draw generalizable conclusions for practice. We aimed to quantify effect sizes, update earlier work, include additional outcome measures, and address the methodological issue of self-selection. Methods: We computed elasticities for individual studies and pooled them to produce weighted averages. Results and conclusions: Travel variables are generally inelastic with respect to change in measures of the built environment. Of the environmental variables considered here, none has a weighted average travel elasticity of absolute magnitude greater than 0.39, and most are much less. Still, the combined effect of several such variables on travel could be quite large. Consistent with prior work, we find that vehicle miles traveled (VMT) is most strongly related to measures of accessibility to destinations and secondarily to street network design variables. Walking is most strongly related to measures of land use diversity, intersection density, and the number of destinations within walking distance. Bus and train use are equally related to proximity to transit and street network design variables, with land use diversity a secondary factor. Surprisingly, we find population and job densities to be only weakly associated with travel behavior once these other variables are controlled. Takeaway for practice: The elasticities we derived in this meta-analysis may be used to adjust outputs of travel or activity models that are otherwise insensitive to variation in the built environment, or be used in sketch planning applications ranging from climate action plans to health impact assessments. However, because sample sizes are small, and very few studies control for residential preferences and attitudes, we cannot say that planners should generalize broadly from our results. While these elasticities are as accurate as currently possible, they should be understood to contain unknown error and have unknown confidence intervals. They provide a base, and as more built-environment/travel studies appear in the planning literature, these elasticities should be updated and refined. Research support: U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.Keywords
This publication has 100 references indexed in Scilit:
- Exploring Causal Effects of Neighborhood Type on Walking Behavior Using Stratification on the Propensity ScoreEnvironment and Planning A: Economy and Space, 2010
- Efficacy of EMDR in children: A meta-analysisClinical Psychology Review, 2009
- Built Environment Correlates of WalkingMedicine & Science in Sports & Exercise, 2008
- The effects of neighborhood density and street connectivity on walking behavior: the Twin Cities walking studyEpidemiologic Perspectives & Innovations, 2007
- Does the built environment make a difference? Additional evidence from the daily activity and travel behavior of homemakers living in New York City and suburbsJournal of Transport Geography, 2007
- Neighborhood Design and Walking Trips in Ten U.S. Metropolitan AreasAmerican Journal of Preventive Medicine, 2007
- Exploring Associations between Physical Activity and Perceived and Objective Measures of the Built EnvironmentJournal of Urban Health, 2007
- The case of the misleading funnel plotBMJ, 2006
- Automobile Ownership and Use in Neotraditional and Conventional NeighborhoodsTransportation Research Record: Journal of the Transportation Research Board, 2005
- A Meta-analytical Evaluation of Sustainable City InitiativesPublished by SAGE Publications ,1998