Journal of Urban Planning and Development

This study aims to assemble and present the status of the published information available regarding pedestrian safety near crosswalks and bus stops through a comprehensive search of various databases. It focuses on the influence of crossing environment and bus stops, underlining land-use components, crosswalk quality, traffic control, placement of facilities, and other aspects of pedestrian crossing safety. It also offers a detailed discussion of various study designs and statistical modeling techniques implemented in this context over the years, followed by the suggested interventions to improve safety at such high-risk locations. The existing literature elucidates that traffic management strategies and designs have often prioritized the movement of motorized vehicles, resulting in higher risk to pedestrians. This is especially true for low- and middle-income countries. Also, previous research is mostly aligned with offering solutions with limited reference to the reported crash data. Thus, a holistic approach is needed to identify the contributing factors associated with fatal crashes, assess the safety performance at such locations, and thereby offer sustainable planning and design for pedestrian facilities.

The city phenomenon is dynamic, complex, and has an abundance of data. City Information Modeling (CIM) and Digital Twins (DTs) are new data-driven approaches toward monitoring, controlling, and managing cities. The main purpose of this research is to introduce and raise the concept of CIM and DTs as a necessity in the smart city era for urban planning, design, and management and to implement a practical way to achieve these concepts in the Narmak neighborhood of Tehran City (Iran) as our case study. The primary tool is CityEngine software. A method was discovered to simulate cities where the existence and access to data are severely constrained. First, a Geographic Information System (GIS) database was assembled, then it was analyzed, and the relationships between urban data were determined. Then, programming in CityEngine generated a smart three-dimensional (3D) model with all the city’s information. Finally, CIM and DTs led to the production of an integrated 3D database that is smart and interactive.

Abstract

The surface urban heat island (SUHI) phenomenon, predominantly influenced by factors associated with the built-up environment, is prominent in large metropolitan areas. To effectively mitigate the escalating thermal environment challenges arising during large cities’ developmental planning, rigorously examining the spatial interdependencies between the built-up environment and the SUHI phenomenon is imperative. Employing Beijing's primary urban area as a case study, this research addresses the gap in the systematic analysis of spatial correlations between the built-up environment and SUHI within the urban heat island effect research domain. The study leverages Landsat-8 satellite data spanning 2016–2020, Sentinel-2 land-use classification data, and 2020 digital elevation model (DEM) data, integrating them with geospatial data processing techniques to probe the multifaceted associations between the built-up environment and SUHI in a 1 × 1-km grid-based local-scale model. This investigation is distinguished by developing a Comprehensive Built-up Environment System Index, synthesized through multisource data and multidimensional methodologies. The study culminates in the following key findings: (1) Between 2016 and 2020, Beijing's primary urban area manifested an ascending spiral trend in the SUHI effect, with the heat island morphology exhibiting nonuniformity across the four seasons. (2) In the historical summer heat island scenarios of Beijing's primary urban area, the architectural and roadway environments demonstrated a consistently positive correlation with the SUHI effect. (3) Excluding the average number of floors parameter, all remaining urban built-up environment parameters exhibited a significant association with SUHI fluctuations.

Practical Applications

This research provides valuable insights on the following aspects for urban planners, policymakers, and practitioners addressing the surface urban heat island effect in Beijing's main urban area. (1) Urban heat island mitigation: Influential urban parameters, like building density, road connectivity coefficient, and green space, significantly impact surface urban heat island (SUHI) intensity. Targeted strategies, such as increasing green spaces and implementing cool roofs, can mitigate the SUHI effect and improve urban thermal comfort. (2) Season-specific planning: Recognizing seasonal variations in SUHI intensity allows for season-specific urban planning. Implementing cooling strategies, like urban cooling parks and remarkable pavement technologies, during summer in heat-prone areas efficiently helps manage thermal environments. (3) Data-driven decision-making: Leveraging geospatial data and advanced analytics fosters data-driven urban planning. Policymakers can use the Comprehensive Built-up Environment System Index to assess the impact of urban parameters on SUHI intensity, facilitating evidence-based policy formulation and adaptive management. (4) Climate-resilient urban design: Integrating SUHI mitigation measures, such as green infrastructure, cool roofs, and reflective materials, helps enhance climate resilience. Urban designers can create sustainable and climate-resilient urban environments, promoting long-term urban sustainability and well-being.

Optimizing production–living–ecological space (PLES) can benefit territorial space planning and sustainable development in China. Thus, spatiotemporal evolution characteristics and influence factor analyses are vital. Laiwu, China, was selected as the study area due to its complex terrain and development history. A multitemporal land-use and land-cover classification extracted from Landsat remote-sensing images for 2001–2018 and the self-organizing map method were combined to identify the area’s multitemporal PLES. The PLES evolution trajectories were extracted based on the multitemporal PLES. The main factors influencing the PLES spatiotemporal evolution differences were revealed using the random-forest-based factor importance evaluation method. The results showed that changes in the PLES trajectories occupied ∼ 18% of the study area. The ecological space recovery type was mainly observed in previously stable ecological space areas. Changes in the production space expansion (PSE) and living space expansion were mainly agglomerated in the fringe areas of previously stable production–ecological and living space lands. Distance from early built-up areas was the main factor influencing PLES expansion. Ecological space was mainly distributed far away from built-up areas, and living and production spaces were mainly distributed near the built-up areas. Additionally, the slope of the terrain affected the spatial distribution of PLES expansion to a certain extent, and the gross domestic product clearly affected the distribution of PSE.

Abstract

Old industrial areas have numerous ecological safety problems, requiring green regeneration to mitigate related risks. This study considered the impact of public participation and willingness to adopt green regeneration of old industrial areas and developed an evolutionary game model for the local government and developers. Then, we analyzed the initial strategy and relevant variables of the game through MATLAB (version 2021a) simulation to inform the establishment of green regeneration of old industrial areas. The study results showed that public willingness to use regenerated industrial areas and green preferences could motivate the adoption of green regeneration among developers. The incremental cost of ecological restoration of old industrial areas considerably hinders developers from opting for green regeneration. When the incremental cost exceeds the government’s financial subsidies and policy preferences, developers often opt for traditional renovation. Furthermore, punitive measures enforced by local government against developers were found to be more effective than incentives; when the cost of punishment exceeds the incremental cost of ecological restoration, developers often opt for green regeneration. Although the ecological safety concerns in old industrial areas can prompt local governments to opt for stringent regulations and developers for green regeneration at the beginning of the game model, evolutionary stability is not reached.

Practical Applications

It is necessary to study the green regeneration of old industrial areas as this issue has attained global consensus and is related to the sustainable development of the ecological environment and the improvement of the public quality of life. By modeling a multi-interest game scenario, this paper further clarified the key factors hindering the green regeneration of old industrial areas, which is helpful in solving the practical problems existing in the implementation of such projects and promoting the development of green regeneration in old industrial areas. At the same time, based on the problem of ecological security constraints in the old industrial areas, the research guided by public satisfaction has promoted the development of green regeneration projects in the old industrial areas, effectively improved the current situation of the old industrial areas and its surrounding ecological environment, accelerated the process of urban renewal, and injected new vitality into the construction of national ecological civilization.

Prediction and monitoring of urban sprawl is a significant urban issue for planners, decision makers, and local authorities in terms of spatial data, strategies, and prediction models. Egyptian cities have expanded rapidly in the last 40 years. This uncontrolled urban growth requires a review of Egyptian urban policies and regulations. The Greater Cairo Region (GCR) is Egypt’s economic capital and a significant industrial and commercial city. This study uses spatio-temporal data to suggest an approach based on integrating cellular automata (CA) and multicriteria evaluation (MCE) like analytical hierarchy process (AHP) and running it within the geographical information system (GIS) for monitoring, analyzing, and allocating informal growth in the context of unplanned regions like the GCR. At first, the weights of influencing growth factors were determined and calculated using AHP. Next, the probability map was created according to AHP weights. The historical probability map was then generated based on the historical development. Then a standalone CA macro was developed based on AHP weights to calculate the proximity index for existing urban and transportation features using Moore’s extended neighborhood matrix. Finally, the general suitability map was created to identify the most sensitive areas for growth over the next two decades. The prediction process was performed based on the 2012 urban boundary. Then, the prediction accuracy was verified using the Kappa coefficient based on actual urban extents in 2017. The results showed that 676 km² (35%) of the study area was not sensitive, 386.5 km² (20%) was slightly sensitive, 522 km² (27%) was almost sensitive, and 348 km² (18%) was extremely sensitive to urban sprawl. Finally, we predicted the urban growth for the period from 2022 to 2052 for every 5 years. The outcomes showed a linear scattered sprawl pattern along transportation features and an annular pattern around existing urban spaces. Therefore, fertile farming land and natural resources in the GCR are set to become almost extinct over the next two decades, threatening food production and security. These results indicate the necessity to modify the region’s urban policies to protect the agricultural areas and control the unplanned urban sprawl.

Abstract

Industrialization and urbanization are significant facets of modernization. The asynchronous development of the two is closely related to the agglomeration of producer services. This paper constructed an asynchrony index to describe the development gap between industrialization and urbanization. Various spatial weight matrices were introduced to test the spatial autocorrelation of the asynchrony index. Applying spatial econometric models, we explored the impact of agglomeration of producer services on the asynchrony index from two aspects: diversified agglomeration (DA) and specialized agglomeration (SA). The following conclusions are drawn from the empirical findings, which are based on data from 31 Chinese provinces between 2008 and 2019: (1) the asynchrony of industrialization and urbanization exhibits the spatial autocorrelation increasing over time; (2) SA exacerbates the asynchrony, while DA alleviates the asynchrony; (3) SA exerts greater impacts in highly industrialized and urbanized regions, while DA exerts greater effects in lowly industrialized and urbanized regions; and (4) agricultural dependence and infrastructure level weaken the impacts of SA and strengthen the impacts of DA. Income level weakens the impacts of both SA and DA. The results of this study provide a reference for policymakers to adjust the industrial layout in a targeted manner to regulate the asynchronous nature of modernization development.

Practical Applications

Peace and development are the themes of the world today. Most developing countries are experiencing or about to experience industrialization and urbanization. The world reality indicates that the two are not always synchronized in countries due to resource and cultural differences. Producer services not only improve agricultural and industrial production efficiency but also bring population agglomeration effects like other industries. In the era of informatization, the producer services exert a profound impact on industrialization and urbanization through two agglomeration modes. This technical paper quantifies the asynchrony between industrialization and urbanization using data from 31 provinces in China and verifies the opposite effects of two agglomeration modes on asynchrony. In cities with different levels of industrialization and urbanization, cities with higher or lower agricultural dependence, and cities with higher or lower infrastructure levels, the impact direction of the two agglomeration modes shows stability, while the magnitude varies. Cities with higher per capita income tend to develop into consumer cities, where industrialization should lag behind urbanization.

The global rise in urban energy demand poses severe environmental and economic health challenges. We need adaptive policies in urban planning to reduce the need for urban energy. This has become a prominent agenda in urban planning, encompassing social (education and innovation in consumption), economic (real pricing), and physical (urban morphology) aspects. This research aims to investigate the influential role of urban form, particularly the physical environment, on energy performance. The methodological approach is centered on conducting analytical-comparative research to examine how urban form influences theoretical energy requirements. Yazd City is selected as a case study because of its distinctive features and traditional approaches to urban sustainability, which have been largely overlooked in previous energy consumption investigations. In a broader comparative context, five tissue types (morphological units) have been selected from Rome, Barcelona, Madrid, and Venice and used as the analytical basis of the study. The research categorizes urban forms into three levels: macro (fabric), medium (block), and micro (building patterns). Heating, cooling, and total energy consumption were computed at each level. The findings indicate that, at the macroscale, the Barcelona fabric offers the highest potential for adaptation in the hot, dry climate of Yazd City. Moreover, the paper analyzes the most recurring morphological indices in the tissues and proposes guidelines for new developments tailored to Yazd City's unique climatic conditions. By focusing on urban form's impact on energy performance, this research contributes to the broader understanding of sustainable urban planning. It offers valuable insights for energy-sensitive urban development in other contexts facing similar climate challenges.

Urbanization is one of the biggest challenges in the world today. Sixty-eight percent of the world's population will reside in cities and urban areas by 2050. Transitioning to a smart city is the key to overcoming the urbanization challenges. This study aimed to develop a smart city rating system that determines the overall smartness score of Riyadh City. A mixed method approach was used: qualitative research involved interviews, whereas quantitative analysis utilized the fuzzy analytic hierarchy process (AHP) and multiple-criteria decision analysis (MCDA) to determine city smartness scores using main pillars and subfactors. The findings showed that Riyadh's smart city development is influenced by several factors. The smart economy carries a weight of 17.8% and a smartness score of 74.15%, while smart people holds a weight of 8.1% and a score of 59.79%. Culture diversity, education, and the Human Development Index emerge as the most dominant subfactors. Smart living carries a weight of 8.2% and a smartness score of 51.86%, with health and security being crucial aspects of human life. Smart governance carries a weight of 17.8% and a smartness score of 81.451%, with smart business services, transparency, open communication, and collaboration being the most important factors. Smart urban services hold a weight of 17.9% and a score of 43%, with transport, logistics, urban planning, infrastructure, smart parking, digital monitoring, and safety being the most dominant subfactors. Smart construction carries a weight of 3.9% and a smartness score of 43.83%, with sustainable houses and smart buildings being the most dominant subfactors. Smart mobility holds a weight of 18% and a smartness score of 52.34%, with congestion, accidents, transport efficiency, and a sustainable transportation system being the most dominant subfactors. Understanding the strengths and weaknesses of Riyadh smart city from the current research will help developers improve and maintain areas aligned with Saudi Vision 2030 while also providing a foundation for future research on similar cities or varying factors.

Racial and ethnic minorities disproportionately reside in neighborhoods with low access to food. However, scholars have little evidence about whether this results in a disadvantage in travel for food shopping by race and ethnicity. This study overcomes previous limitations by using data and a method that allows for directly measuring travel to food stores by race and ethnicity at the individual level of data. The purpose is to determine whether racial and ethnic minorities experience longer travel times to food stores than White shoppers, and to evaluate factors that might contribute to differences by race and ethnicity. This study uses a nationally representative sample of data from the American Time Use Survey during the Years 2005–2019 and multilevel modeling regression that includes both individual and metropolitan-level data to estimate travel time spent on food shopping by race and ethnicity in US metropolitan areas, while controlling for other variables known to influence travel behavior. The findings indicate that Black, Asian, and Hispanic travelers experienced longer travel durations than White shoppers, with Black travelers spending 27% more travel time when shopping for food than White travelers. The disadvantage cannot be explained by differences in income or household structure, but the role of residential segregation remains unclear. This research reveals a need for policy interventions to address an unfair burden on racial and ethnic minorities that may contribute to diet-related diseases while also siphoning time from a limited daily schedule.

A smart city is regarded as a new form of urban development proposed by humans to cope with urban problems. Smart cities are of great interest to theoretical circles and are favored by city governments. However, in China, research on common problems and solution strategies in the process of smart city construction is still insufficient. To address this insufficiency, we utilized Python language and the Selenium library to realize a web crawler and construct a smart city corpus background library. Then, the word2vec model was used for word vectorization to divide policy texts into phrases, and 132 policies from 85 cities above the prefecture level in China were analyzed using the Gaussian mixture model (GMM). The results showed many problems in the smart city construction process in China, including the homogenization of content, the wide topic coverage, the influence of higher-level governments, the mismatch with the local situation, and the neglect of relationship governance. Moreover, an efficiency-governance model was designed, and it held certain theoretical and practical guiding significance for further promoting the healthy and sustainable development of smart city construction in China.

The business environment is a critical element in promoting high-quality urban economic development. To evaluate the quality of the business environment in Chinese cities, we first build a business environment evaluation system in this paper. Then using the entropy weight, Dagum Gini coefficient, β-convergence model, and Markov chain method, we evaluate and analyze the development level, spatial differences, and dynamic development patterns of the business environments in 278 cities in China from 2003 to 2019. Our findings reveal that the overall business environment level in Chinese cities is not high. There are significant differences in business environment levels between megacities, large cities, and small–medium-sized cities, and within-group differences and between-group differences are the main reasons for the differences in business environment levels. However, the contribution rate of within-group differences shows a downward trend, while the contribution rate of between-group differences shows an upward trend. In addition, the business environment levels in Chinese cities have spatial correlation, and the national and three major city groups' business environment levels exhibit strong absolute and conditional β-convergence processes. Finally, the business environment levels in Chinese cities demonstrate path dependence, which is typified by low mobility and makes achieving upward mobility challenging.

To alleviate the contradiction between supply and demand of urban and rural construction land and improve the utilization efficiency of rural homesteads, the state has issued policies to guide villagers withdrawing their homestead with subsidies or compensation. Previous studies have found that differentiation is one critical factor in villagers’ withdrawal from homesteads, but how differentiation affects the villagers’ withdrawal is not well interpreted. To explore and examine the homestead withdrawal mechanism, this paper identified and condensed the influence factors of villagers’ willingness to withdraw from homesteads from the perspective of differentiation, taking Kuikeng Village in Puning City, China, as an example. The results indicated that: (1) villagers’ differentiation has a significant impact on their willingness to withdraw from homesteads, and the higher the income differentiation level, the lower the willingness to withdraw from homesteads; (2) the health status of villagers, whether they are willing to change their identity, the confirmation of homestead rights, the holding period of homestead property rights, and the understanding of homestead exit policy are positively correlated with their willingness to withdraw from homesteads; and (3) villagers’ psychosocial characteristics, villagers’ differentiation, and government policy characteristics have a significant impact on homestead withdrawal. It is important to guide villagers to withdraw from homesteads and realize rational land use.

This paper reviews how excessive lighting in historical sites can negatively affect the enjoyment of social gatherings. Because light pollution has the potential to affect socialization negatively, we need the appropriate tools to handle these effects. As part of this research, three techniques were used to analyze these effects: a bibliographical examination of relevant concepts, field measurements of illumination levels at historical sites in Cairo, Egypt, as well as questionnaires sent out to users around the world to determine what influences their perceptions of historical sites at night. Based on the results of a systematic review, we developed the concept of toolkits for creating a lively ambiance for evening events. Furthermore, based on the spatial measurements made in the case study, it was determined that the challenge of visual pollution hinders creating a vibrant atmosphere at historical sites. An online survey that investigated the factors influencing the enjoyment of historical sites at night around the world found that positioning the lighting fixtures and illumination is one of the most critical factors. The results of the current study confirm that the urban form of the context provides a pleasant visual and perceptual experience at night as well. The findings of this study have led to three design considerations that can help urban planners and designers when it comes to implementing lighting in public spaces. As a result of these considerations, the historical site in the case study, Al-Hussein Square, Cairo, presents a livelier ambiance at night; hence they can be used by urban designers to enhance the ambiance in similar settings to the present case study. This toolkit provides valuable insights into how local authorities and citizens can work together to reduce lighting pollution by examining the causes of the pollution.

The urban heat island effect has become a common meteorological phenomenon in urban areas in recent years. Research on urban thermal environments has used various technologies, such as remote sensing, on-site/mobile measurement, and model simulation. This study employed satellite images to comprehensively identify the correlations between thermal environments and the urban morphology in Taipei, Taiwan. This study applied the local climate zone (LCZ) scheme to classify urban land types by surface characteristics. The LCZ classification result was used as the basic unit for assessing and calculating urban forms by the landscape ecological metrics (LEM). For the thermal environment information, this study collected air temperature data by mobile measurements and combined it with records from weather stations. The results showed that different urban form compositions were associated with thermal environments. Built-up areas with higher levels of edge density tended to have higher heat intensity. For two regions with the same proportion of green spaces and built environments, the temperature varies with different configurations. This study can evaluate the urban thermal environments and assist urban planners who do not have a meteorological background in finding urban climate issues and developing heat mitigation strategies.

Redevelopment of industrial land is an essential component of urban regeneration in China, which has profound implications for promoting urban sustainable development. Therefore, quantitative evaluations of the spatial variation of industrial land transformation and its influencing factors are required. This study explores the spatial patterns of industrial land transformation using overlay analysis. Then, it establishes a multinomial logistic regression model to explore their influential factors by collecting empirical data, including of the industrial renewal projects from 2010 to 2018 in Shenzhen, China. The findings show that urban redevelopment practices have profoundly transformed industrial land use in the recent urban renewal process. Market actors implement industrial land redevelopment projects with policy guidance. These actors with diversified redevelopment goals have directly shaped the spatial outcomes of industrial land transformation. A small portion of industrial sites has been transformed into public facilities and open space as required by redevelopment policies. At the same time, the majority have been converted into residential and commercial spaces, as well as new industrial spaces for innovative industries under market orientation. Significant spatial differences in regeneration outcomes exist at the urban level. The regression results indicate that policy and planning regulations, and land ownership, are the critical factors affecting the transformation of urban industrial land into different types of land uses. A favorable plot location tends to promote the transition of industrial parcels for commercial functions, with less impact on other options. The impact of public demand is almost negligible.

Abstract

In the twenty-first century, with the development of urbanization, large-scale mine wastelands in peri-urban areas have become increasingly closely related to the daily lives of urban and rural residents. Adopting a reuse method that meets the health needs of these residents, restoration, construction of mine wastelands in the suburbs of cities, and the formation of high-quality healthy environments and service supply are in line with the demands of healthy city construction and sustainable development. In addition, they have received increasing attention from all sectors of society. Based on the main criteria for constructing a healthy urban environment, this paper takes the comprehensive remediation and construction project of mine wastelands in the Taiyuan Xishan Ecological and Cultural Tourism Demonstration Area as a case study. It uses on-site surveys and an open-ended web-based questionnaire. It focuses on researching the perceived health needs of urban and rural residents in Taiyuan City, Shanxi Province, China concerning the main elements that determine health, such as the natural ecological environment, the construction of facilities and activities, and the local economic and industrial development. The results of 748 questionnaires that were completed by participants who effectively participated in the survey show that most participants preferred a comprehensive development model (86.6%) to reuse these areas. In addition, the specific needs of urban and rural residents for health safety, equity and quality, and healthy low-carbon industries should be considered. The differences in demand among groups of citizens due to different ages, living distances, levels of education, and occupations should be comprehensively considered. This paper demonstrates that a full understanding of the health needs of residents has great practical significance when improving the healthy environment and service supply level in mine wasteland restoration and construction and promoting the development of regional healthy city construction.

Practical Applications

Recently, the healthy environment and sustainable development of areas that host large-scale mine wastelands on the outskirts of cities have received increasing attention from all sectors of society. This paper suggests that during the reuse and construction of these areas, government management, development, and construction companies, planning and design organizations, and other departments that are involved in policy formulation and construction implementation should give full consideration to the perceived health needs of urban and rural residents in the host city, and to groups of residents of different ages, living distances, occupations, and educational levels, to form a high-quality and equitable health environment and services in the area. In addition, active public participation, on-site research, and interviews are essential for relevant departments to improve their understanding of resident health needs.

The geographies of public–private partnership (PPP) are an important but neglected topic in urban development and planning. Few existing studies have explored the spatial heterogeneity of PPP development in different regions within a country. This article aims to explore the impact of uneven regional development on PPP development and spatial governance for PPPs as a response. First, the concept of variegated PPPs is proposed to portray and analyze the impact of uneven regional development on PPPs from the dimensions of complexity, regional differences, and the spatialization of policy based on China. Second, a conceptual framework is constructed for PPP spatial governance as a response that includes the actors, driving forces, processes, patterns, and regulations. Finally, the underlying mechanism and implications of PPP spatial governance are discussed. This article concludes that spatial governance is conducive to the development of PPPs in developing countries and promotes the performance of PPPs and policymaking. When formulating and adjusting PPP-related policies, governments from developing countries should tailor the policies to their national conditions and consider regional differences inside a country. Therefore, this article might have reference value for other countries, especially developing countries with rapid urbanization.

This study evaluated urban space quality in Beijing using service quality and landscape quality based on points of interest (POI) data, street view data, and perception data derived from deep learning and then applied a hedonic price model (HPM) and a spatial lag model (SLM) to calculate people's heterogeneity marginal willingness to pay (MWTP) for urban space quality across categories, locations, and purchasers. The results showed that (1) people are willing to pay for urban space quality, especially urban landscape quality; however, the MWTP for urban space quality decreases as its distance from the main employment center increases; (2) the MWTP for urban space quality has an inverted u-shaped relationship, indicating that individuals with medium income exhibit a higher willingness to pay for urban space quality; and (3) urban space quality exhibits spatial spillover effects on individuals' MWTP in surrounding areas, with a spatial spillover boundary of approximately 22 km. Overall, this study provided important insights into quantifying the economic benefits of urban space quality and highlights the importance of considering different categories, locations, and purchasers when assessing urban space quality.

Advanced manufacturing agglomeration (AMA) plays a significant role in supporting regional development, but few studies have examined it on a regional geographic space. In this paper, the relationship between AMA and regional economic‒innovative‒social coupling coordination development (EISCCD) was studied spatially at a fine-grained scale (500 m × 500 m), taking Liangjiang New Area (LJNA), China, as an example. The results showed that (1) the spatial patterns of AMA and EISCCD in LJNA were similar; (2) among the four different combinations, the economic‒social combination had the highest degree of coupling coordination and a more balanced spatial distribution; (3) AMA and the four coupling coordination combinations all showed significant positive relationships, with innovation playing a prominent mediating role; and (4) there was evident spatial heterogeneity in the relationship between AMA and ECICCD. These results demonstrate the possibility of building suburban subcenters with advanced manufacturing. These findings are beneficial for urban and regional planners to monitor the development status at different locations within cities, enabling precise construction and management of various facilities, enhancing land utilization efficiency, and aiding in the realization of a business-friendly and livable urban environment.

Abstract

With the acceleration of urbanization, there has been rapid expansion in urban areas, the associated intense human activity exerting serious impacts on urban environments. Clarifying the interaction between urbanization and the urban environment is important for promoting high-quality sustainable regional development. In this work, a decoupling model is introduced that was used to measure the interaction between (demographic, economic, spatial, and social) urbanization and the urban environment (environmental status, pressure, and response) in the Shanghai–Hangzhou Bay urban agglomeration (SHBUA) from 2003 to 2018. The results showed that: (1) the development level of the four urbanization subsystems improved to different degrees, but overall, the speed of the economic and spatial urbanization (builtup land sprawl) was faster than the social and demographic urbanization; (2) from 2015 to 2018, the relationship between urbanization and the environment in Huzhou, Jiaxing, Ningbo, and Shaoxing was strongly decoupling, indicating negative growth in the urban environment and a trend of environmental deterioration, with increased urbanization coming at the cost of environmental damage; and (3) except for Shanghai, the growth rate of the four subsystems of urbanization in the cities was higher than that of the overall environmental level. Cities with higher urbanization levels were found to be more likely to achieve harmony between urbanization and the urban environment. This study provides a basis for analyzing the relationship between urbanization and the urban environment in urban agglomerations, along with decision-making support for a more harmonious integration of man with nature in the SHBUA.

Practical Applications

China is currently undergoing a dramatic urbanization process, with populations exploding and construction land expanding in the cities. In addition, ecological cities have been proposed that would increase the area of urban ecological space, causing a negative impact on the urban environment. Despite this process taking place in China, it is unclear how urbanization affects the urban environment, which is of great significance for avoiding the wrong development mode and for realizing sustainable development. From our analysis, we found that, for cities with low levels of urbanization, such as Huzhou, Jiaxing, Ningbo, and Shaoxing, increasing urbanization accompanied a deterioration in the urban environment. Contrastingly, in the more developed cities, such as Shanghai, greater development of the economic and social environment meant more attention could be paid to the construction of the urban environment. Thus, urban environmental improvement and urbanization complement each other. By exploring the relationship between the degree of urbanization and the urban environment, it is possible to inform urban development and environmental management plans in order to mitigate the negative impact of urbanization and improve the urban environment to achieve sustainable urban development for the coming decades.

This fundamental investigation aimed to deliver a new theoretical perspective to address the brain drain problem from Northeast China. The amenity theory could provide a robust ideological foundation that enables cities to attract talent and drive urban innovation and development. This study explores the spatial–temporal pattern evolution of talent inflow to Northeast China based on data from the China Migrant Dynamic Survey (CMDS) from 2012 to 2018. It utilizes spatial analysis methods and geographic detectors to interpret the factors that influence the spatial heterogeneity of talent inflow from the perspective of urban amenities. The following results were obtained. First, the trend in the number of talent inflows displays an initial increase followed by fluctuations before inflow destinations are concentrated in four major cities and certain resource-based cities in Northeast China. Second, a high-quality labor force is engaged in varied industries. Talents with different academic qualifications could avail themselves of diverse employment choices, primarily in information transmission, software, and information technology services. Those with undergraduate and postgraduate degrees could find positions in the education industry. Third, the talent flow mode has gradually changed from interprovincial to intercity movements within a particular province. However, the mode of talent flow differs according to discrete academic qualifications. Most postgraduates choose the interprovincial flow, and undergraduates and junior college students predominantly select the intercity flow within a particular province. Fourth, the inflow of talent to destinations in Northeast China is based on artificial amenities and tends toward cities that offer efficient public services, abundant leisure facilities, and innovative soft and hard environments. The major factors that affect the spatial differentiation in talent inflow to a city include the number of hospital beds per 10,000 people, scientific research, creative practitioners, talent-related policies, exhibition halls and other leisure and entertainment venues, and average housing prices in the city. Most interactions between artificial environment amenity factors and other elements are better than their individual effects, especially the interactive configuration of affordable urban housing prices, high-quality public resources, such as education and health care, and abundant leisure and entertainment facilities.

Abstract

With the rapid development of high-speed railways (HSR) in China, the level of travel accessibility for residents has improved. While previous research has predominantly concentrated on the accessibility of HSR networks, it is imperative to recognize that the accessibility of HSR services is intrinsically intertwined with the spatial arrangement of HSR stations. The unreasonable location of HSR stations can lead to inequitable problems in service facilities within metropolitan areas. When investigating the accessibility of HSR stations, the road network emerges as the primary conduit for residents’ mobility. The spatial variance of the road network manifests not only in divergent spatial densities but also in the traffic conditions across distinct temporal and spatial intervals. Based on the road network and dynamic road conditions, this study proposed a modified two-step floating catchment area method (M2SFCA) by using high-speed railway station location data, the subdistrict office (village and town) data, road network data, and floating car data (FCD). Taking the XZQ Metropolitan Core Area (the metropolitan core area of Xiamen, Zhangzhou, and Quanzhou, China) as an example, this paper analyzed the impact of a newly planned HSR station on the spatial distribution of accessibility in the metropolitan core area. The findings revealed that the newly planned HSR station has led to a substantial 68.18% elevation in overall regional accessibility. Notably, approximately 35% of the population has transitioned from locales with diminished accessibility to regions with heightened accessibility. Furthermore, the HSR station has ameliorated the hitherto uneven spatial distribution of accessibility advantages across the region. Under the limitation of travel time in metropolitan areas, this study explored an accessibility evaluation model based on dynamic traffic data, providing a method for an impartial and equitable evaluation of transportation infrastructure placement within the metropolitan core area.

Practical Applications

This study shows that the new high-speed railway station will not only improve regional accessibility but also affect the equilibrium degree of the spatial distribution of regional accessibility benefits. It is suggested that the metropolitan area should further build high-grade roads, strengthen transportation network links between urban areas, and improve regional accessibility. At the same time, for areas where the degree of accessibility fairness has declined, it is suggested to increase the energy level and scale of their high-speed railway stations to reduce the dependence of local residents on external high-speed railway stations and improve the convenience of local residents’ travel. In addition, this paper improves the accessibility measurement method—2SFCA method. By improving the search carrier of the spatial action domain, the calculation method of road traffic state, and the selection of time threshold, the improved 2SFCA method is more in line with the actual situation, which expands the dynamic space–time analysis ability, improves the accuracy of accessibility calculation, and can more accurately judge the fairness of high-speed railway station construction.

This study addresses the imperative to revitalize aging urban parks to meet the evolving demands of China’s rapidly urbanizing population. Focusing on the Shaping Park in Chongqing, China, as a case study, the research analyses 281 surveys on park satisfaction and employs the importance–performance analysis (IPA) method to interpret the importance and performance values of 30 critical attributes in a four-quadrant satisfaction evaluation map. The findings reveal five major issues in the park and propose five renewal design strategies to accommodate the changing needs of park users, including enhancing access to cultural activities, recreational spaces, and park facilities while considering the significance of high-quality landscapes and natural features. The study reaffirms existing research that underscores the importance of enduring social and cultural values in satisfying contemporary users’ satisfaction. It also highlights the necessity of adapting innovative design principles to evolving user behaviors and demands. The insights gained from this regional Chinese case study can enrich the literature and holds broader implications for park renewal projects on a global scale. Future studies should explore evaluation methods applicable to urban–suburban and wetland parks and subsequently redefine design strategies based on the findings derived from the IPA model.