Urban Expansion and Transportation: The Impact of Urban form on Commuting Patterns on the City Fringe of Beijing

Abstract

IntroductionSince the 1980s China's megacities have undergone rapid urban expansion as a consequence of the dramatic development of housing and industry on the city fringes. In Beijing, for example, the size of the built-up areas tripled between 1986 and 2006. In this rapid urban expansion process, much of the new urban development on the city fringe has diverged quite obviously from the traditional compact urban form and shows characteristics of urban sprawl.The direct environmental costs of urban expansion, such as loss of farmland and green space, have already been widely discussed. However, the indirect environmental effects of increasing transportation needs due to urban expansion are often overlooked. Engaged in a rapid urban expansion process, most Chinese megacities are experiencing changes in commuting patterns which include, particularly, increases in long-distance commuting trips between the city centre and suburban areas. For example, data from Beijing's Second (2000) and Third ( 2005) Travel Surveys reveal that the number of commuters who entered the central urban area in rush hour increased by 46.2% between 2000 and 2005 and had reached three times the number of residents living in the centre by 2005 (BTC, 2000; 2005a). During the same period, the travel distance per person increased on average from 8.0 km to 9.3 km. This change has already

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