Journal of Urban Planning and Development

This paper examines the relationship between residential development pattern and intraneighborhood infrastructure provision based on a case study of the cities in Story County, Iowa. The dataset consists of 16,331 residential parcels in 1,755 residential blocks. Residential development pattern is characterized by residential parcel density and an aggregated parcel shape index. Factor analysis shows that the length of streets is an appropriate indicator to represent overall infrastructure provision. Logarithmic multiple regression analysis reveals a good relationship between residential development pattern and infrastructure provision variables. Parcel shape has a stronger influence on infrastructure provision than parcel density does, and together they explain more than 55% of the variation in infrastructure provision. The results of this empirical study establish a means to evaluate development proposals on the basis of development pattern and the associated infrastructure provision cost.

The access that state highways provide to adjacent land enables the development of that land. Although access alone does not ensure that development will occur, land with access from a state highway has considerably greater development potential than land without such access. City governments regulate the development of the land, while state Departments of Transportation (DOTs) wield authority over the adjacent state highways. This separation of authority creates a significant challenge for state DOTs as they work to expand state highway facilities in a bid to stay apace with the explosive growth of U.S. metropolitan areas. This paper identifies methods adopted by local governments and state DOTs to coordinate land use policies and manage development along state highways. We find that, regardless of whether a state has legislation that supports state-local cooperation, the city government’s willingness to partner with the DOT remains a critical factor in the success of coordination efforts for managing land use along state highways.

This paper presents a procedure for the estimation of multiclass origin-destination (O-D) matrices for a highway network. The system consists of a number of vehicle classes. Demand is assigned to the network in a user equilibrium manner. An entropy maximization procedure is proposed to simultaneously estimate the O-D demand matrices of all vehicle classes, which are consistent with the multiclass traffic counts that are observed directly in the network. A case study of the Hong Kong highway network demonstrates the effectiveness of the proposed methodology for a real large-scale network.

In terms of the similarity between a road network and a circuit network, this paper demonstrates that Kirchhoff’s current and voltage laws observed in the circuit can be employed in the traffic assignment of the road network. Inspired by the more consummate circuit theory, we put forward a new idea and method of traffic assignment. A set of models is formularized by means of multiobjective nonlinear planning theory, and the solutions are found using MATLAB. An example is provided to prove the feasibility of the new traffic assignment model.

It has become increasingly apparent that a paradoxical situation is emerging with respect to urban services in less developed countries. On the one hand a huge demand for urban infrastructure has resulted from rapid urbanization; on the other, existing infrastructure is falling into disrepair before completing its design life. Operation and maintenance (O&M) has been identified by commentators as the key to enhancing the sustainability of existing infrastructure and assets. However, there is a general lack of understanding by stakeholders about the role of operation, maintenance and sustainability in the context of good governance. The aim of this paper is to explore the constraints to operation, maintenance, and sustainability of urban services. The findings are based on case studies from India, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka. In each of the case locations, projects were completed more than $3\text{years}$ ago. Data collection tools included document review, interviews, and participant observations. Forums and workshops were also held. In order to distinguish between the different constraints acting upon urban services, the term “sustainability” has been separated according to its technical, financial, and institutional aspects. This paper demonstrates how findings from community involvement in service delivery in developing countries can be of benefit to engineers or NGOs working with communities to improve the operation and maintenance of urban services in developed countries. Traditional centralized systems for O&M, which are the responsibility of municipalities and utilities, are not delivering. Recently there has been a search for alternatives such as community-based approaches. Internationally it seems service users are being encouraged to ensure the infrastructure in their neighborhood is kept in good condition. It is hoped that getting service users involved will lead to increased efficiency, benchmarking, raise awareness/debate, contributed to national growth, reduced waste, improved resource allocation, and improved competitiveness. However, evidence of the success of such schemes is rather patchy. It has been recognized that neither community nor government alone can ensure the sustainability of infrastructure; a partnership approach is needed. The keys to improving operation and maintenance—and hence sustainability—are the availability of information and the attribution of clear roles and responsibilities. Operation and maintenance can be seen to be the most important determinant of citizens’ satisfaction with urban services; this in turn leads to better governance.

Parking is often a controversial topic. Truck parking, which has reverberations on land use and economic development, was brought to the forefront through TEA-21 Section 4027 that required the Federal Highway Administration to analyze commercial vehicle parking along highways and the Interstate highway system. This paper argues that varying methodologies yield different findings in the assessment of truck parking availability. To examine the impact of different methods on assessing truck parking availability, the paper includes a review of literature, a discussion of methodologies, a case study from Nebraska, and a discussion of planning implications.