Towards Sustainable cities: High-Density equals to Better Proximity? - Global Comparative Study on Urban Compactness -

Keywords: Compact city, Urban Density, Proximity, Night Time Light(NTL), Open Street Map(OSM), Big data
Abstract Type: Paper Abstract

Abstract

Compact city has been discussed as a sustainable urban form after the emergence of the concept of sustainable development from UN report. While there are diverse indicators to measure urban compactness, density and proximity are the most commonly used indicators. It is generally known that high density leads to better proximity, however just because the city has a high density doesn’t mean that its proximity gets better. Hence, to understand the compactness of the city, the relationship between density and proximity must be taken into account. Given the above background, the main purpose of the study is to investigate the link between density and proximity through global urban comparison analysis among 92 cities in both developing and developed countries over the world. Also, we aim to examine the difference between the developed and developing countries on the linkage between density and proximity. To achieve the goal, we utilized open-source big data from various sources including nighttime light(NTL), open street map(OSM), and World POP. There are three main findings for the research. First, the link between density and proximity is quite different in developing countries compared to developed countries. Second, the link between density and proximity varies by region. Third, proximity tends to be improved with a polycentric form. The study offers valuable inputs by providing with the framework appliable global scale on measuring urban compactness, discovering cities in developing countries using open-source data, and highlighting the importance of considering both density and proximity for achieving sustainable urban form.