[sustran] Re: Sustainable transport - "Self-containment"

[Jain Alok]

Dear Alan,

Hong Kong tried this concept over last 30 years. In 1970s, "New Towns" were
developed in the outskirts with an aim of making them self-contained. The
land-use and transport systems were also devised with the same aim. Over the
time, however, this did not seem to work. Because travelling between these
self-contained "New Towns" was not prohibitive, a desire for better
opportunities (I guess) while not uprooting their families could be
fulfilled. The "Inter-New Town" travel kept increasing and to keep pace with
the demand, Government had continued to provide the infrastructure thereby
further improving the accessibility. As this cycle continued, the
self-containment was not possible.

I must mention that the although "New Towns" are not self-contained they
have evolved into full communties where a large amount of activities
(shopping, schooling, recreation etc) are self-contained.

Alok Jain

-----Original Message-----
From: Alan P Howes [mailto:alan at ourpeagreenboat.co.uk] 
Sent: Tuesday, May 31, 2005 3:09 AM
To: UTSG at JISCMAIL.AC.UK; sustran-discuss at jca.apc.org
Subject: [sustran] Sustainable transport - "Self-containment"

(Please feel free to post on to any more appropriate lists)

We are currently doing some work in the Arabian Gulf, connected with a
new transport hub and city development - planned population c. 1m.

The aim is that the city, and its main neighbourhoods, would be
"self-contained" as far as possible - i.e. minimising travel between
the neighbourhoods, and between the city and adjacent cities, so
reducing loading on the strategic road network (various plans for PT
too).

Which raises a few questions, for instance - 

- How do you measure "self-containment"?  Presumably a measure would
need to include trip lengths and, I think, a measure of urban
development density.  (For low-density cities, you could have fairly
long trip lengths and still consider there to be a high degree of
self-containment.  But high densities are obviously preferable to
minimise traffic generation.)

- Are there any good case studies of self-contained cities /
neighbourhoods - particularly in places like the Gulf?

- or examples where it has been tried, and failed?

And no doubt I will think of some more - but any input welcome.

Alan
-- 
** Sent from my home email - please reply to alan.howes at cbuchanan.co.uk
** with copy to alan at ourpeagreenboat.co.uk
Alan Howes
Associate Transport Planner
Colin Buchanan and Partners

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