New living concepts in the city: the potential impact of urban planning on travel behaviour

Abstract

For the last decades, residents have moved to the suburbs in order to satisfy their desire for a house with a garden. Being far less accessible than residences in cities, these suburban areas often require longer commuting distances and motorised travel and therefore cause greater emissions and energy consumption than compact development. Recently, new living concepts that combine suburban housing types with urban amenities are emerging within the urban fabric. In this paper it will be discussed if these new living concepts promote energy efficient mobility and if they are an alternative to suburban residences. By analysing the daily mobility of residents living in a new inner-city area in Berlin, the results suggest that this area mostly attracts families who welcomed the combination of living in a central location with good public transport access and having a house with a garden. In the context of daily mobility, an interesting mismatch was found: over 80 % of the households have a car – this is highly above average in Berlin. However, the residents make more than half of their trips by foot or by bike. Nonetheless, the potential for sustainable land use and travel behaviour is not fully exploited. Simple urban planning measures, such as providing less private parking spaces, ensuring a fine mix of uses and proximity to public transport can – at least to a small extent – further promote non-motorised and public transport modes and therefore reduce emissions due to motorised private transport in urban areas.