A framework to include socio-demographic characteristics in potential job accessibility levels in low-car and car-free development areas in the Netherlands

Abstract

Car-free development has become popular in recent years due to concerns regarding transport-related health issues in urban areas as well as a growing trend toward sustainability and environmentally friendly living. Although car-free development is regarded as progress to promote active transport modes and healthier cities, the accessibility impacts for its residents remain unclear. To address this knowledge gap, this paper proposes a job accessibility assessment framework that integrates individual and household socio-demographic characteristics into a job accessibility assessment, making it possible to account for commuting preferences of different population groups in accessibility analyses. For this purpose, a stated choice survey was conducted in existing low-car areas in the Netherlands to determine transport use and perception of public transport trip characteristics. Then, the influence of socio-demographic characteristics on trip perceptions was analyzed using a Latent Class Logit (LCL) regression model and Monte Carlo simulations. Finally, a multi-modal transport network combining walking and public transport trips was used to assess potential job accessibility levels of different population groups in a car-free development area. The proposed framework was implemented in a case study in the province of Utrecht (the Netherlands). Results show notable differences between the job accessibility levels within different population groups, reflecting distinct perceptions toward commuting trip characteristics based on socio-demographic characteristics and demonstrating the suitability of the applied approach to assess accessibility levels in car-free development areas. Compared to the sample average distribution, more than 15% lower accessibility levels were observed for starters (age 18-35) in some urban areas, indicating the aversion to longer and more expensive commuting trips. Contrarily, increased accessibility levels for families (>2 persons in household) were observed, demonstrating the acceptance to experience longer commuting travel times and additional costs. No differences were observed between accessibility levels of the sample average and senior adults (age >50).