Here we will discuss the impact of land-use on transport. Given the overall population size and demographic characteristics, the total volume of passenger transport and the split between transport modes depends on the locations of human activities, the needs and desires of people and the transport resistances (generalized transport costs).Partly because of growing car ownership levels and car use, most Western countries expanded the motorway network, resulting in shorter travel times, a higher level of car usage and dispersed land-use patterns. This trend has also started in Indian metropolitan cities development like Delhi. Most research and policy documents on the impact of land use on travel behaviour use as indicators kilometers traveled by different modes, often by motive; and number of trips. For instance, a person may first bring a child to school, then go to work and do shopping after work, before turning other hand; such complex trips induce people to use individual transport, which is in many cases the car.
The increasing car use level can be seen as an intermediate target, having a major impact on congestion and environmental indicators. Land use may not only influence the indicators as mentioned before (such as the overall level of car use), but also the spatial patterns of travel and so congestion levels, environmental and safety impacts.
Most research and policy documents pay attention to changes in land use, e.g. the conversion of agricultural land to urban land use. People in rural areas along the coast of Odiasa, outside the existing urban area, on average travel 10 km per day. Differences in car use are even bigger: car use of people living in urban locations within the existing urban area is about one third lower than of people living in the rural locations outside the existing urban area.
Only few authors writing on the urban planning and urban affairs have addressed the impact of life styles, attitudes or preferences for modes on travel behaviour, the link with residential location and land use, and self-selection. The condition existing in India is quite different from those of the western world. People inIndia attach social and economic status with the mode of transport. Like people traveling in cars are supposed to be of high status than those preferring other modes of transport for local journeys. Sometimes there are some transportation problems like at the home end (in addition to local public transport) the car and bicycle are available for the trip to the station whereas at the workplace end only public transport and walking are available.
Land uses have a relatively strong impact on transport. For example, the differences in car use can be as high as twenty percent or even more of the travel to, from and within the areas which locations were varied geographically. The introduction and successful execution of metro train in Delhi and BRTS in Ahmedabad have proved that efficient public transport can reduce or substantially discourage the use of cars. The government and the policy planners should think of more innovative models of the urban development like compact cities and sustainable neighborhoods for solving the crisis of transport alternatives and reduction in travel time.
Shashikant Nishant Sharma
Urban Planner and Consultant
