From massive rapid reconstruction to small-scale stepwise urban renewal: A contribution to socially integrative cities?: Case studies of Wuhan, China

Initially, urban renewal focused mainly on promoting better physical environments, living conditions and economic activities, by upgrading derelict neighbourhoods. But since the 1990s in Europe, the urban renewal approach emphasising the physical, environmental and economic spheres has been replaced by a more comprehensive and integrated approach, which links the stimulation of economic activities and environmental improvements with social integration, inclusion and cultural elements. The former pathway, marked by massive rapid demolition and reconstruction, is regarded as the dominant urban renewal approach in China. Driven by the unprecedented urbanisation, it has brought enormous economic benefits but at the cost of aggravating social and environmental problems, resulting in unsustainable cities. Therefore, China has entered a new stage by transforming into a more sustainable avenue – the small-scale stepwise urban renewal. Since 2009, the Chinese government has launched experimental actions in many pilot cities to cultivate the new approach. This trend can be noticed in different fields involving policies, movements, institutional settings and academia. Government and scholars expect small-scale urban renewal to simultaneously enhance physical infrastructures, reinforce cultural diversity and foster social cohesion, leading to sustainable and socially integrative cities. However, it can be questioned if the new urban renewal approach genuinely has a better performance in this regard. Therefore, the guiding research question (RQ) asks: How does urban renewal contribute to socially integrative cities in China? The author first sought insights to build a holistic conceptual framework: urban renewal towards socially integrative cities. It helped understand the urban renewal evolution in China, and the concept of social integration and inclusion both in international and in the Chinese context, especially regarding urban renewal projects. By conducting a literature review, three research gaps were identified: 1) A lack of systematic studies that integrate and summarise fragmented urban renewal approaches and concepts in China; 2) Social integration and inclusion in China have a relatively narrow perspective of “assimilation”; 3) Systematic and multi-faceted evaluation of experimental urban renewal in China, especially in social aspects, is too inadequate to make suggestions for improving current Chinese urban renewal approaches. To fill these gaps, this dissertation firstly scrutinises the differences between these co-existing two renewal approaches in China, massive rapid reconstruction and small-scale stepwise urban renewal; secondly, it examines to what extent these two approaches have contributed to socially integrative cities, and thirdly, analyses the strengths and weaknesses of these two approaches and the rationales behind them. The 'socially integrative cities' (SIC) analytical framework, jointly proposed by Chinese and European scholars, is applied to examine the accomplishments in two urban renewal cases. The author defines 26 indicators corresponding to 12 characteristics, grouped into five dimensions: collaborative urban planning and design, urban environment and living conditions, local economy and labour market, socio-cultural development and social capital, institutional development and urban finance. The methodology comprises descriptive documents analysis and literature research, followed by qualitative comparative case studies. Two typical cases were selected, representing massive rapid reconstruction (Wuhan Tiandi) and small-scale stepwise urban renewal (Tanhualin). Both are traditional inner-city and run-down areas in Wuhan, a frontrunner prefecture-level city in China. During the fieldwork, semi-structured in-depth interviews have been conducted on identified stakeholders. After the fieldwork, a thematic content analysis and a stakeholder analysis were performed to analyse the interview data collected from online databases, documents, and project plans. Results firstly suggested that the differences between massive rapid reconstruction and small-scale stepwise urban renewal exist in the aspects of the intervention levels, the actors and strategies, the scales of coverage, the planning goals, the renewal targets, the housing types and the sources of funds. An urban renewal project can combine both approaches in a hybrid model or adopt different approaches in different periods. The assessment of the implementation and impact of both urban renewal cases reveals that massive rapid reconstruction and small-scale stepwise urban renewal have genuinely contributed to socially integrative cities in all five dimensions but to a varying degree. Massive rapid reconstruction has unique advantages in improving living and environmental conditions in urban areas, upgrading the physical environment in distressed areas, and strengthening the economy and labour market on a large regional scale, but it does not respect the social and cultural dimension. In contrast, small-scale stepwise renewal prevails in the adaptive reuse of existing buildings, revitalising cities and older towns, keeping people in the original neighbourhoods, stabilising housing prices and affordability, strengthening the economy and labour market on a small local scale, preserving cultural heritage, fostering the identity of neighbourhoods, as well as fostering social capital and the engagement of local stakeholders. However, it suffers from a comprehensive but limited effectiveness. The study also shows that many strengths and weaknesses of both urban renewal approaches are antithetical. Based on this finding, the author discovers their rationales behind the two different approaches, investigates the underlying causes that precipitate these antitheses, and proposes possible solutions to the challenges and dilemmas facing current Chinese urban renewal. Overall, this research concludes fragmented urban renewal approaches and concepts in China, summarised into two paradigms: massive rapid reconstruction and small-scale stepwise urban renewal. Besides, it develops a more comprehensive and analytical framework that adapts to the Chinese context - “socially integrative cities”, to examine urban renewal projects. Finally, it elucidates in-depth empirical knowledge of the urban renewal paradigm shift in China and makes recommendations for government, practitioners and scholars to promote a more socially integrative urban renewal.:CONTENTS 1 Introduction 1.1 Problem overview 1.2 Study design and thesis structure 2 Conceptual framework: urban renewal towards socially integrative cities 2.1 Urban renewal in China 2.1.1 Basic Chinese terms and concepts 2.1.2 Massive rapid demolition and reconstruction 2.1.3 Small-scale stepwise urban renewal 2.1.4 Urban renewal evolution in China: initiating, testing and promotion 2.2 Social integration and inclusion 2.3 Influence of urban renewal on social integration and inclusion - socially integrative cities 2.4 Typical practices of urban renewal in China 2.5 Raised research questions 3 Research design and methodology 3.1 Overall research design 3.2 Framework to examine the accomplishment of socially integrative cities in urban renewal projects 3.3 Comparative case studies 3.3.1 Case study selection 3.3.2 Interview design 3.3.3 Data analysis 4 Exploring the context: Wuhan city and its two cases 4.1 Urban renewal in Wuhan 4.2 Planning documents of Wuhan concerning urban renewal 4.3 Massive rapid reconstruction case: Wuhan Tiandi 4.4 Small-scale stepwise urban renewal case: Tanhualin 5 Differences between massive rapid reconstruction and small-scale stepwise urban renewal 5.1 Classification criteria for urban renewal approaches 5.2 Intervention levels 5.2.1 Redevelopment, rehabilitation, and conservation 5.2.2 Intervention levels in massive rapid reconstruction and small-scale stepwise urban renewal 5.3 Actors and strategies 5.3.1 Government-led, property-led, comprehensive model, and community-oriented mode 5.3.2 Actors and strategies in massive rapid reconstruction and small-scale stepwise urban renewal 5.3.3 Sources of funds in massive rapid reconstruction and small-scale stepwise urban renewal 5.4 Scales of coverage 5.4.1 Macro-level, medium-level, micro-level 5.4.2 Scales of coverage in massive rapid reconstruction and small-scale stepwise urban renewal 5.5 Planning goals 5.5.1 Physical, social, economic, and morphological integrated 5.5.2 Planning goals in massive rapid reconstruction and small-scale stepwise urban renewal 5.6 Renewal targets 5.6.1 Old city, old factory, old village 5.6.2 Renewal targets in massive rapid reconstruction and small-scale stepwise urban renewal 5.7 Summary 6 Contributions to socially integrative cities by massive rapid reconstruction and small-scale stepwise urban renewal 6.1 Collaborative urban planning and design 6.1.1 Reducing urban sprawl and appropriate access to urban land 6.1.2 Involving different stakeholders in collaborative and participative planning and design on the different politico-administrative levels 6.1.3 Reflections 6.2 Urban environment and living conditions 6.2.1 Improving urban environment and living conditions in Wuhan Tiandi 6.2.2 Improving the urban environment and living conditions in Tanhualin 6.2.3 Reflections 6.3 Local economy and labour market 6.3.1 Strengthening the local economy and labour market 6.3.2 Strengthening technical and social innovation in cities and neighbourhoods opening up new possibilities for the local population 6.3.3 Reflections 6.4 Socio-cultural development and social capital 6.4.1 Fostering proactive education and training policies for children and young people in disadvantaged neighbourhoods 6.4.2 Preserving cultural heritage and fostering the identity of neighbourhoods and their inhabitants 6.4.3 Fostering social capital and engagement of local stakeholders 6.4.4 Reflections 6.5 Institutional development and urban finance 6.5.1 Supporting adequate institutional conditions and mechanisms 6.5.2 Supporting adequate financial conditions and mechanisms 6.5.3 Reflections 6.6 Summary 7 Strengths and weaknesses of massive rapid reconstruction and small-scale stepwise renewal and their rationales 7.1 Collaborative urban planning and design 7.1.1 Rental-sales rights inequality 7.1.2 Paternalistic Danwei system 7.1.3 Lack of channels for public participation 7.1.4 Lack of vertical and horizontal integration between government sectors 7.1.5 Lack of clear collective goals 7.2 Urban environment and living conditions 7.2.1 Housing prices and affordability 7.2.2 Low-rent housing programmes and two innovations 7.2.3 Monetisation strategy 7.2.4 Efficiency versus quality 7.3 Socio-cultural development and social capital 7.3.1 Cultural heritage protection 7.3.2 Aesthetic concept cultivation 7.3.3 Open community versus gated community 7.3.4 Understandings of social integration and inclusion 7.4 Institutional development and urban finance 7.4.1 Establishment of urban renewal bureau 7.4.2 Transition from management-oriented government to service-oriented government 7.4.3 Human-centred, people-oriented design 7.5 Summary 8 Conclusion References Annexes Annex 1: Interview guidelines Annex 2: Dates of interviews Annex 3: Collected data Annex 4: Example of consent formUrsprünglich zielte Stadterneuerung in erster Linie darauf ab, Infrastruktur, Lebensbedingungen und wirtschaftliche Gegebenheiten durch die Aufwertung baufälliger Stadtviertel zu verbessern. Seit den 1990er Jahren jedoch wurde in Europa der Ansatz der hauptsächlich materielle, ökologische und ökonomische Aspekte betonenden Stadterneuerung durch eine ganzheitlichere Herangehensweise abgelöst. Diese verbindet die Stimulation ökonomischer Aktivitäten und ökologischer Verbesserungen mit sozialer Integration und Teilhabe der Bewohner sowie Rücksichtnahme auf kulturelle Gegebenheiten (Dixon et al., 2009, p. 3). Ersterer Ansatz, gekennzeichnet durch großflächigen und schnellen Abriss und Neubau städtischer Areale, wird meist als die in China übliche Vorgehensweise bei Stadterneuerungen angesehen. Getrieben von einem Prozess beispielloser Urbanisierung, ging sie einen enormen wirtschaftlichen Aufschwung einher. Dieser brachte allerdings gravierende soziale und ökologische Problemen mit sich, welche zu einer nicht-nachhaltigen Stadtentwicklung führten. Deshalb beschreitet China zunehmend einen nachhaltigeren Weg: die schrittweise Stadterneuerung in jeweils kleinerem Umfang. Seit 2009 initiierte die chinesische Regierung verschiedene experimentelle Pilotprojekte für den neuen Ansatz. Dieser Trend macht sich in verschiedenen Bereichen wie Planungs- und Baustrategien, institutionellen Rahmenbedingungen und der Wissenschaft bemerkbar. Sowohl chinesische Regierungsinstitutionen als auch zahlreiche Wissenschaftler gehen davon aus, dass eine kleinteiligere Stadterneuerung nicht nur die physische Infrastruktur verbessert, sondern auch das Gefühl der Identität, die kulturelle Entwicklung und den sozialen Zusammenhalt unter den Bewohnern verstärkt. Damit geht allerdings die Frage einher, ob der neue Ansatz der Stadterneuerung tatsächlich per se besser zur Verwirklichung dieser Absichten beiträgt. Die zentrale Forschungsfrage lautet daher: Auf welche Weise trägt Stadterneuerung zur sozialen Integrativität chinesischer Städte bei? Zunächst entwickelte die Autorin den konzeptionellen Rahmen: Stadterneuerung im Sinne sozial-integrativer Stadtentwicklung. Dieser hilft beim Verständnis chinesischer Stadterneuerung und der Einsicht in den städtebaulichen Bezug von Konzepten sozialer Integration und Inklusion sowohl international als auch spezifisch in China. Bei der Recherche in Dokumenten und Fachliteratur zeigten sich weiterhin folgende drei Forschungslücken: 1) Ein Mangel an systematischen Untersuchungen, die die einzelnen Herangehensweisen und Konzepte der Stadterneuerung in China integrieren und zusammenfassen; 2) Ansätze der sozialen Integration und Teilhabe folgen in China einem relativ engen Verständnis von „Assimilierung“; 3) Der gegenwärtige Bestand systematischer Analyse und Bewertung experimenteller Stadterneuerungsprojekte ist hinsichtlich sozialer Aspekte unzureichend für eine Verbesserung aktueller Ansätze der Stadterneuerung in China. Um diese Forschungslücken zu füllen, sollen in der vorliegenden Dissertation zum Ersten die Unterschiede zwischen den beiden in China angewendeten Vorgehensweisen der Stadterneuerung – großflächiger und scheller gegenüber kleinteiligem und schrittweisem Stadtumbau – erforscht werden; zum Zweiten soll untersucht werden, inwiefern beide Ansätze zur sozial integrierten Stadtentwicklung beitragen, und zum Dritten soll eine generelle Analyse der Stärken und Schwächen beider Ansätze und ihrer inneren Logik erfolgen. Zur Untersuchung zweier Fälle von Stadterneuerung bezüglich des Ziels einer sozial-integrativen Stadtentwicklung kommt der Analyserahmen „Socially Integrative Cities“ (SIC), der gemeinsam von chinesischen und europäischen Wissenschaftlerinnen und Wissenschaftlern vorgeschlagen wurde, zum Einsatz. Die Autorin definierte 26 Indikatoren aufbauend auf 12 Charakteristika aus vorausgegangenen Forschungen, die fünf thematischen Dimensionen zugeordnet wurden: kollaborative Stadtplanung und Stadtgestaltung, urbane Umwelt- und Lebensbedingungen, wirtschaftliche Situation und Arbeitsmarkt vor Ort, soziokulturelle Entwicklung und soziales Kapital und schlussendlich institutionelle Entwicklung und städtisches Finanzwesen. Das methodische Vorgehen vereint beschreibende Analyse von Dokumenten und Literaturrecherche, gefolgt von qualitativen vergleichenden Fallstudien. Für die Untersuchung wurden zwei typische Fälle von Stadterneuerungsprojekten ausgewählt, die einerseits eine großflächige und schnelle (Wuhan Tiandi) und andererseits eine kleinteilige und schrittweise (Wuhan Tanhualin) Vorgehensweise repräsentieren. In beiden Fällen handelt es sich um traditionelle innerstädtische, jedoch baufällige Viertel in Wuhan, einer aufstrebenden chinesischen Bezirkshauptstadt. Im Laufe der Feldforschung wurden unter anderem semistrukturierte vertiefende Interviews mit Vertretern von Einrichtungen geführt, die vorher als Stakeholder identifiziert wurden. Für die Auswertung des Interviewmaterials schloss sich während und nach der Feldforschung die inhaltliche Analyse und die Stakeholderanalyse an. Weitere Daten hierfür wurden von Online-Datenplattformen, Dokumenten und Projektplanungen generiert. Zunächst einmal legen die Resultate nahe, dass die Unterschiede zwischen großflächiger, schneller und kleinteiliger, schrittweiser Stadterneuerung hauptsächlich bei den Aspekten Interventionsebene, Akteure und ihre Strategien, Größe der Baufläche, Planungs- und Erneuerungsziel, Gebäudetypen und Finanzierung liegen. Dabei besteht die Möglichkeit, dass Projekte der Stadterneuerung beide Vorgehensweisen in einem hybriden Modell kombinieren oder verschiedene Ansätze in unterschiedlichen Abschnitten zur Anwendung bringen. Die Auswertung der Umsetzung und Folgen der beiden Stadterneuerungsprojekte offenbarte, dass sowohl die großflächige und schnelle als auch die kleinteilige, schrittweise Stadterneuerung in unterschiedlichem Ausmaß einen spezifischen Einfluss auf allen fünf o.g. Dimensionen des Konzepts der sozial-integrativen Stadt haben. Großflächige und schnelle Stadterneuerung bietet unbestreitbare Vorteile für die Verbesserung der Lebens- und Umweltbedingungen, bei der baulichen Aufwertung in baufälligen Stadtbereichen sowie für die Stärkung der regionalen Wirtschaftstätigkeit und des überregionalen Arbeitsmarktes. Allerdings nimmt sie wenig Rücksicht auf soziale und kulturelle Aspekte. Im Gegensatz dazu zeichnet sich eine kleinteilige, schrittweise Stadterneuerung durch flexible Umnutzung existierender Gebäude, eine Wiederbelebung von Stadtkernen und Altstädten und stabileren und erschwinglicheren Immobilienpreisen aus. Menschen können in ihrem angestammten Viertel bleiben, die Lokalwirtschaft und der Arbeitsmarkt vor Ort werden gestärkt, baukulturelles Erbe bewahrt und sowohl das Identitätsgefühl der Quartiersbewohner mit ihrer Umgebung als auch Sozialkapital und Engagement lokaler Stakeholder gestärkt. Gleichwohl leiden diese zwar umfassenden Ansätze unter einer begrenzten Effektivität. Darüber hinaus wurde in der Studie deutlich, dass die Vorteile des einen Ansatzes in vielen Fälle die Nachteile des anderen spiegeln und umgekehrt. Darauf aufbauend beschrieb die Autorin die zu Grunde liegende Logik beider Wege, untersuchte die Ursachen, die zu deren Widersprüchen führen und bietet mögliche Lösungswege für die Herausforderungen und Dilemmata an, denen gegenwärtige chinesische Stadterneuerungsprojekte gegenüberstehen. Diese Forschungsarbeit fasst verschiedene bislang fragmentarische Ansätze und Konzepte der Stadterneuerung in China zu zwei Paradigmen zusammen: Dem des großflächigen, schnellen Stadtumbaus und jenem der kleinteiligen, schrittweisen Erneuerung. Daneben wurde ein breiter gefasster und an den Kontext der chinesischen „sozial-integrativen Stadt“ angepasster Analyserahmen für Stadterneuerungsprojekte entwickelt. Schlussendlich erläutert die vorliegende Forschungsarbeit ausführlich empirische Erkenntnisse im Zusammenhang mit dem städtebaulichen Paradigmenwechsel, der sich in China vollzieht, und gibt Empfehlungen für entsprechende Regierungsinstitutionen, Fachleute und Wissenschaftler zur Förderung einer sozial–integrativen Stadtentwicklung.:CONTENTS 1 Introduction 1.1 Problem overview 1.2 Study design and thesis structure 2 Conceptual framework: urban renewal towards socially integrative cities 2.1 Urban renewal in China 2.1.1 Basic Chinese terms and concepts 2.1.2 Massive rapid demolition and reconstruction 2.1.3 Small-scale stepwise urban renewal 2.1.4 Urban renewal evolution in China: initiating, testing and promotion 2.2 Social integration and inclusion 2.3 Influence of urban renewal on social integration and inclusion - socially integrative cities 2.4 Typical practices of urban renewal in China 2.5 Raised research questions 3 Research design and methodology 3.1 Overall research design 3.2 Framework to examine the accomplishment of socially integrative cities in urban renewal projects 3.3 Comparative case studies 3.3.1 Case study selection 3.3.2 Interview design 3.3.3 Data analysis 4 Exploring the context: Wuhan city and its two cases 4.1 Urban renewal in Wuhan 4.2 Planning documents of Wuhan concerning urban renewal 4.3 Massive rapid reconstruction case: Wuhan Tiandi 4.4 Small-scale stepwise urban renewal case: Tanhualin 5 Differences between massive rapid reconstruction and small-scale stepwise urban renewal 5.1 Classification criteria for urban renewal approaches 5.2 Intervention levels 5.2.1 Redevelopment, rehabilitation, and conservation 5.2.2 Intervention levels in massive rapid reconstruction and small-scale stepwise urban renewal 5.3 Actors and strategies 5.3.1 Government-led, property-led, comprehensive model, and community-oriented mode 5.3.2 Actors and strategies in massive rapid reconstruction and small-scale stepwise urban renewal 5.3.3 Sources of funds in massive rapid reconstruction and small-scale stepwise urban renewal 5.4 Scales of coverage 5.4.1 Macro-level, medium-level, micro-level 5.4.2 Scales of coverage in massive rapid reconstruction and small-scale stepwise urban renewal 5.5 Planning goals 5.5.1 Physical, social, economic, and morphological integrated 5.5.2 Planning goals in massive rapid reconstruction and small-scale stepwise urban renewal 5.6 Renewal targets 5.6.1 Old city, old factory, old village 5.6.2 Renewal targets in massive rapid reconstruction and small-scale stepwise urban renewal 5.7 Summary 6 Contributions to socially integrative cities by

Revealing intra-urban spatial structure through an exploratory analysis by combining road network abstraction model and taxi trajectory data

The unprecedented urbanization in China has dramatically changed the urban spatial structure of cities. With the proliferation of individual-level geospatial big data, previous studies have widely used the network abstraction model to reveal the underlying urban spatial structure. However, the construction of network abstraction models primarily focuses on the topology of the road network without considering individual travel flows along with the road networks. Individual travel flows reflect the urban dynamics, which can further help understand the underlying spatial structure. This study therefore aims to reveal the intra-urban spatial structure by integrating the road network abstraction model and individual travel flows. To achieve this goal, we 1) quantify the spatial interaction relatedness of road segments based on the Word2Vec model using large volumes of taxi trip data, then 2) characterize the road abstraction network model according to the identified spatial interaction relatedness, and 3) implement a community detection algorithm to reveal sub-regions of a city. Our results reveal three levels of hierarchical spatial structures in the Wuhan metropolitan area. This study provides a data-driven approach to the investigation of urban spatial structure via identifying traffic interaction patterns on the road network, offering insights to urban planning practice and transportation management

Public Health Service Management is Characterized by 3 Pillars of Innovation

Traditional political science and public administration literature have long held the belief that the innovation in public service management is primarily contingent on the level of financial resources available. However, recent developments in China challenge this assumption, as they raise questions about why certain regions, despite having limited financial resources, are selected as pilot areas for "treatment first" reforms, and why some of these less affluent regions demonstrate superior implementation of specific pilot measures compared to their wealthier counterparts in the eastern regions. This article introduces a comprehensive theoretical framework for understanding the innovation in public service management, positing a three-pronged approach that considers the interplay of finance, supply-side factors, and demand-side dynamics. It argues that the innovation in public service management within a given region is the result of a complex interaction among these three key elements. Drawing on empirical data, this article conducts a comparative analysis of the factors influencing "treatment first" reforms in four distinct regions of China: Wuhan, Shanxi, Chongqing, and Hunan. By exploring the unique dynamics at play in each of these regions, the study sheds light on the nuanced relationship between finance, public service supply, and demand. Additionally, it elucidates how these factors jointly determine the success and trajectory of public service management innovation in different locales, challenging conventional wisdom and providing valuable insights into the contemporary governance landscape in China

On the road to prosperity? The economic geography of China's national expressway network

Over the past two decades, China has embarked on an ambitious program of expressway network expansion. By facilitating market integration, this program aims both to promote efficiency at the national level and to contribute to the catch-up of lagging inland regions with prosperous Eastern ones. This paper evaluates the aggregate and spatial economic impacts of China's newly constructed National Expressway Network, focussing, in particular, on its short-run impacts. To achieve this aim, the authors adopt a counterfactual approach based on the estimation and simulation of a structural "new economic geography" model. Overall, they find that aggregate Chinese real income was approximately 6 percent higher than it would have been in 2007 had the expressway network not been built. Although there is considerable heterogeneity in the results, the authors do not find evidence of a significant reduction in disparities across prefectural level regions or of a reduction in urban-rural disparities. If anything, the expressway network appears to have reinforced existing patterns of spatial inequality, although, over time, these will likely be reduced by enhanced migration

On the road to prosperity ? The economic geography of China's national expressway network

Over the past two decades, China has embarked on an ambitious program of expressway network expansion. By facilitating market integration, this program aims both to promote efficiency at the national level and to contribute to the catch-up of lagging inland regions with prosperous Eastern ones. This paper evaluates the aggregate and spatial economic impacts of China's newly constructed National Expressway Network, focussing, in particular, on its short-run impacts. To achieve this aim, the authors adopt a counterfactual approach based on the estimation and simulation of a structural"new economic geography"model. Overall, they find that aggregate Chinese real income was approximately 6 percent higher than it would have been in 2007 had the expressway network not been built. Although there is considerable heterogeneity in the results, the authors do not find evidence of a significant reduction in disparities across prefectural level regions or of a reduction in urban-rural disparities. If anything, the expressway network appears to have reinforced existing patterns of spatial inequality, although, over time, these will likely be reduced by enhanced migration.Transport Economics Policy&Planning,Economic Theory&Research,Labor Policies,Roads&Highways,Regional Economic Development

Urban community home based elderly care service system: the dilemma between demand and supply in the city of Wuhan, China

Against a background of global ageing, the problem of ageing has become the basic national condition of China in the 21st century. China's ageing population presents the following characteristics: it is a large-scale, rapid process, an "ageing but not affluent society"; with an inclination to senility, and large regional differences. Wuhan City, in the Hubei Province, is a core city of central China. The basic characteristics of ageing in Wuhan are consistent with the national characteristics. China's rapid ageing coexists with a social background of not affluent population. As the ageing problem becomes gradually more serious, Community Home-based Elderly Care Services (CHECS) will also come under increasing pressure. With the availability of CHECS in China, as well as in Wuhan City, being restricted by scarce social resources and, therefore, unable to meet elderly's demand for services, the supply and demand for CHECS is seriously unbalanced. With the aim of solving this dilemma, the following research objectives have been defined in this thesis: the definition of CHECS and the reason for taking it as the basic supporting system for the elderly; the content of CHECS in Wuhan and the influencing factors of the elderly’s demand for CHECS; the review and analysis of elderly care policies in China and Wuhan City over the last 20 years, including the identification of current supply problems and influencing factors; a theoretical model of CHECS demand and supply is formed; and suggestions on improving the CHECS system in Wuhan are put forward. This thesis uses the Grounded Theory approach and qualitative research methods, including document analysis, participatory observation and in-depth interviews for data collection. Theoretical categorization of collected data was carried out with the coding method that allowed main categories to be extracted and the relationship between categories to be identified to form a substantive theoretical framework of the Demand and Supply of CHECS. In its analysis of the supply of CHECS, this thesis has thoroughly combed through the development context and content of China's elderly care policy in the past two decades, and identified two stages for China's elderly care policy: the normative development stage and the improving stage. Based on the influencing factors analyses, the CHECS demand and supply theoretical model was built. A further finding was that under the limited influence of government and limited resources, the supply of elderly home based care services by the community undergoes a dual problem of policy formulation and policy implementation, which arises from the defects present in the relationship between the different service provision actors.Sob o pano de fundo do envelhecimento global, o envelhecimento tornou-se um problema nacional básica da China no século XXI. O envelhecimento da população Chinesa caracteriza-se por ter sido um processo rápido e em larga escala, por resultar numa sociedade envelhecida, mas não afluente, uma tendência para a senilidade e pela existência de grandes diferenças regionais. A cidade de Wuhan situa-se na China central na província de Hubei. As características básicas do envelhecimento em Wuhan são consistentes com as características a nível nacional. O rápido envelhecimento da China coexiste com um contexto social de carência. À medida que o problema do envelhecimento se torna mais sério, os serviços comunitários de assistência domiciliária (CHECS) sentem uma pressão acrescida. Com os escassos recursos disponíveis quer na China, quer na cidade de Wuhan, é impossível responder à procura deste tipo de serviços, o que provoca um desequilíbrio sério entre a procura e a capacidade de oferta. Esta tese tem como principal objetivo resolver este problema, tendo sido definidos os seguintes subobjetivos: a definição de CHECS e a justificação para ser considerado como serviço básico de apoio à população idosa; o conteúdo deste tipo de serviço em Wuhan e os fatores que influenciam a sua procura pelos idosos; revisão e análise das políticas públicas de apoio aos idosos nos últimos 20 anos, na China e em Wuhan, incluindo a identificação dos atuais problemas e dos fatores que influenciam a oferta de serviços; desenha-se um modelo teórico para a procura e oferta de CHECS; e propõem-se sugestões para a melhoria do CHECS em Wuhan. Esta tese usa a metodologia da Grounded Theory e métodos de investigação qualitativos, incluindo a análise documental, a observação participativa e entrevistas em profundidade, para a recolha de informação. Dos dados recolhidos foram extraídas categorias teóricas com a ajuda do método de codificação, tendo sido também identificadas as relações entre categorias, bem como o quadro conceptual para a Procura e Oferta de CHECS. No âmbito da oferta de CHECS, esta tese examina em detalhe o desenvolvimento contextual e o conteúdo das políticas publicas chinesas de apoio aos idosos nas últimas duas décadas, tendo identificado dois estádios: o estádio de desenvolvimento normativo e o estádio de melhoria. Constrói-se um modelo teórico para a procura e oferta de CHECS com base nos fatores explicativos das duas variáveis. Perante a influência limitada do governo e a existência de recursos limitados, é possível concluir que a oferta de serviços comunitários de apoio domiciliário à população idosa de um duplo problema de formulação e implementação das políticas, derivado das deficiências presentes na relação entre os diferentes fornecedores de serviços

Measuring and optimizing accessibility to emergency medical services

Emergency medical services (EMSs) undertake the responsibility of providing rapid medical care to patients suffering from unexpected illnesses or injuries and transferring them to definitive care facilities. This research concerns several research gaps that are associated with different EMS trips, real-time traffic conditions, improving EMS efficiency and equalities. This research aims to develop GIS-based spatial optimization methods to improve service efficiency and equality in EMS systems. Specifically, the research intends to achieve the following goals: (1) to measure spatiotemporal accessibility to EMS; (2) to improve EMS efficiency and provision through spatial optimization approaches; (3) to reduce urban-rural inequalities in EMS accessibility and coverage using spatial optimization approaches. The proposed approaches are applied in three empirical studies in Wuhan, China. To achieve the first objective, the proximity and the enhanced two-step floating catchment method (E-2SFCA) are adopted to evaluate spatiotemporal accessibility. First, the EMS travel time is estimated for the two related trips as an overall EMS journey: one is from the nearest EMS station to the scene (Trip 1), and the other is from the scene to the nearest emergency hospital (Trip 2). Then, the E-2SFCA method is employed to calculate the accessibility score that integrates both geographic accessibility and availability of EMS. Travel time is estimated by using both static road network with standard speed limits and online map service considering real-time traffic. To achieve the second objective, two facility location models are proposed to improve EMS service coverages for two-related trips (Trips 1 and 2). The first model maximizes the amount of demand covered by both ambulance coverage (EMS station – demand) and hospital coverage (demand – hospital). The second model maximizes the amount of demand that can be served by both ambulance coverage and overall coverage (EMS station – demand – hospital). To achieve the third objective, two bi-objective optimization models are developed. The two models have the same primary objective to maximize the total covered demand by ambulance. The second objective is to minimize one of the two inequality measures: one focuses on accessibility of uncovered rural people, and the other concerns the urban-rural inequality in service coverage. For the first empirical study with respect to spatiotemporal access to EMS, different spatial patterns are found for the three trips (two partial trips and the overall trip). Good accessibility to one trip cannot guarantee good accessibility to another trip. In addition, urban-rural inequalities in EMS accessibility and coverage are observed. Finally, it is observed that real-time traffic conditions greatly affect EMS accessibility, particularly in urban districts. Specifically, the accessibility of EMS becomes poor during the morning (7-9 am) and evening peak periods (5-7 pm). For the second empirical study in relation to EMS optimization involving two related trips, the results find that the first proposed model can guarantee that more demand to be covered by both ambulance and hospital coverages than the Maximum Coverage Location Problem (MCLP). The second proposed model can ensure that as many people as possible to be served by both ambulance and overall coverage than the work by ReVelle et al. (1976). For the third empirical study attempting to reduce urban-rural inequality in EMS, the results show that the first bi-objective model can improve EMS accessibility of uncovered rural demand, and the second model can reduce EMS service coverages between urban and rural areas. However, the improvement EMS inequalities between urban and rural areas leads to a cost of a decrease in the total covered population, especially in urban areas. Regarding policy implications, this research suggests that different EMS trips and traffic conditions should be considered when measuring spatial accessibility to EMS. Spatial optimization research can help improving service efficiency and reduce regional equalities in EMS systems. The work presented in this thesis can aid the planning practice of public services like EMS and provide decision support for policymakers

Dispersion of agglomeration through transport infrastructure

Thesis (Ph. D.)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Dept. of Urban Studies and Planning, 2013.Cataloged from PDF version of thesis.Includes bibliographical references (p. 191-199).My dissertation aims to assess transport infrastructure's influence on the productivity, scale and distribution of urban economic activities through changing intercity accessibility. Standard project-level cost-benefit analysis fails to capture the economy-wide impacts in justifying investments in the transport sector. I propose a research framework that: (1) synthesizes the spatial emphasis of the New Economic Geography theories with the temporal perspective of the growth theories; (2) extends the scope of agglomeration effects by highlighting a city's access to external resources as a partial substitute for its own endowment; and (3) bridges the spatial discontinuity between regional and urban studies by introducing intercity accessibility as a determinant of intra-city land uses. I apply the proposed framework to study the spatial economic impacts of China's high-speed rail system at network, corridor, and node (city) levels. The GIS-based spatial analyses of the network accessibility measured by three alternative indicators consistently illustrate that, the extensive transport investments during 2001-2010 have reduced the disparities in accessibility among cities in China, with the coefficient of variation dropping by nearly 50%. Differently, estimations from the panel data models shed light on the complexity in the relationship between accessibility and economic activities, which consists of both generative and redistributive components and simultaneously leads to convergent and divergent economic outcomes. Yet, empirical evidence denies the saturation effects of accessibility. Extended estimations using different instrument variables (IV) partially relieve the concerns on endogeneity issues. Further analyses of a particular transport corridor reveal that, with HSR, the regional urban hierarchy is evolving towards a more interwoven structure, with major cities reaching for overlapped hinterlands. HSR's short-run influences on the location choice of economic activities vary in terms of spatial coverage and are not necessarily restricted to cities with direct HSR access. The city-level comparative case studies indicate that HSR stations introduce external demand for urbanization, leading to new development once matching land supply exists. A cluster analysis of ten demand-supply-related factors generates three prototypes of station-area development. For each type, public and private sectors have adopted different institutional arrangements, yet common challenges exist in preventing speculative investments and matching the development portfolio with the composition of actual needs. The findings lead to important policy implications for decision-makers in China. First, China has not exhausted the agglomeration benefits dispersing through transport infrastructure given the remarkable regional disparities. From an economic development perspective, HSR lines connecting coastal megacities with lagging inland cities are effective in reducing disparities in accessibility and should be encouraged. Second, for the appraisal of major transport projects including HSR, it is reasonable to extend the standard CBA to include the generative benefits; to evaluate the impacts on regional disparities based on redistributive effects; and to avoid overbuilding through identification of saturation effects. Third, HSR has the potential to reshape the path of urbanization. The evolution of the urban hierarchy towards a more interwoven structure may eventually raise the need for adapting administrative arrangements to fit the actual economic interaction. As to urban configuration, HSR stations may catalyze compact urbanization around transit facilities. However, local governments should avoid using HSR stations as a vehicle for excessive generation of land concession revenues.by Wanli Fang.Ph.D