LUD as an Instrument for (Sub)Metropolitanization: The 1000-District in Rishon-Lezion, Israel as a Case Study

Interest in the role of large urban development (LUD) projects in regeneration efforts of cities has risen in recent years. Studies of their planning process have often focused on global cities, examining challenges associated with their joint (public–private) governance structure, as well as those emanating from the need to balance local and global needs and interests. With few exceptions, the ways in which these projects fit in with metropolitan aspirations of small and medium cities were largely overlooked. In this article, we explore how a large-scale project was used by local authorities to reposition a secondary city as a sub-metropolitan center. Using the case of the 1000-District (Mitcham HaElef) in the Israeli city of Rishon-Lezion, it argues that while the project was originally designed to resolve the city’s scarce employment problem, it was gradually used to endow it with higher-order urban qualities, re-situating it as a sub-metropolitan center in the Tel-Aviv area. To support our argument, we focus on the project’s housing and employment components, including changes they were subjected to along the planning process, as well as the marketing campaign, which sought to re-present the city as a viable sub-metropolitan alternative. Drawing on qualitative methods, including personal interviews and content analysis, the article illustrates how one city’s large project is instrumentalized to attain metro-scale objectives. In so doing, it contributes to a nuanced understanding of the complexity of LUD planning, its stated objectives at various scales, and implications for actors in and beyond metropolitan jurisdictions

Mobility and accessibility concerns for tourists in Tel Aviv-Jaffa area

This research aims to study the mobility and accessibility challenges tourists confront within a central tourist district. The subjects of mobility and accessibility have been studied extensively, particularly in relation to individual commu-ting flows, or shopping. However, for both commuting and shopping activities, individuals are dealing with a familiar area. On the other hand, the tourist’s spatial experience occurs in a far less known environment and has less been examined. The study focuses on the domestic tourist experience in the Tel-Aviv-Jaffa area. In depth face-to-face interviews were conducted to evaluate how considerations of spatial mobility and accessibility are perceived among domestic tourists in comparison to other aspects of the tourist experience. In addition, interviews with planners and policy makers on the municipal and national levels were conducted to evaluate the services given to tourists, existing and future plans, and the care for tourists’ needs. The research depicts that the spatial mobility challenges tourists face have a great influence on tourist satisfaction, even greater than the tourist product itself. Moreover, the study points to the correlation between land-use density in tourist places of residence and their perception of spatial challenges

E-tail versus retail: The effects on shopping related travel empirical evidence from Israel

E-commerce, like many other information technology (IT)-based activities, also offers the potential substitution of telecommunications for travel, resulting in a trade-off between virtual and physical travel. The aim of this paper is to explore whether and how the increasing opportunities for purchasing and information gathering offered by information technologies affect shopping-related travel. The paper will attempt to explore the question of substitution by modelling output of consumer decisions on mode of purchase. Then, this will be combined with clustering the population according to their affinity to IT and finally by identifying the differences in the socio-economic attributes of the different clusters.Shopping Substitution Complementarity E-commerce Travel

Rail transportation and core-periphery reliance in Israel

Many policy makers suggest that rail is the solution for the development of the periphery, often conceived as a space suffering from under-development and lack of accessibility to the core. However, this policy, promoted around the world, does not consider core-periphery reliance as one of the rail investments' impacts. This study will examine the question: to what extent does the peripheral city, connected to the rail service, has a larger reliance on the core city? This study is a cross-sectional study that focuses on the passenger rail of an existing line to the periphery and of a planned line. The research reveals that rail does not necessarily induce the local development of the periphery but it induces larger reliance on the core

The impacts of E-retail on the choice of shopping trips and delivery: Some preliminary findings

E-retail, like many other information technology-based activities (telecommuting, telemedicine etc.) offers a potential substitution of travel by telecommunications. Traditional shopping activities typically consist of a visit to a store in which product information is sought, and a decision on purchase is made. Pending that decision, the product is obtained and most often self-delivered by the consumer. Certain types of products are store-delivered to the consumer premises. In the face of E-retail, consumers can acquire information, make a purchase transaction and choose a delivery arrangement from a remote location. These options may result in a reduction of transport activity, as a delivery by the supplier is potentially more efficient than the traditional process. The current study presents a conceptual model of the decisions households make with regard to information gathering, purchase transactions and delivery mode. Data on revealed behavior and various socio-demographic and economic characteristics of shoppers was collected in the Tel-Aviv Metropolitan area in the summer of 2004.

Modeling consumers’ purchase and delivery choices in the face of the information age

A major trend, recently drawing much attention, is the employment of new technologies in retailing. This involves a shift from some aspects of the traditional store format towards the introduction of electronic means of performing retail activities. E-retail encompasses three main activities—specifically, a product search activity (often referred to as a product-evaluation or information-gathering facility), an online purchase function, and the product delivery capability. Early studies have asserted that information technology would generate a revolution in the retail sector, owing to the potential of the web to reduce the costs of transaction, transportation, and searching. Yet the proportion of virtual shopping is significantly smaller than that of traditional shopping. An understanding of this difference can be obtained by modeling consumer choices. This paper will examine the different shopping activities, by modeling both purchase and delivery choices. Identifying the reasons that consumers use virtual (electronic) modes is crucial in order to influence the share of electronic shopping and to understand the potential impacts. Modeling the probability of using e-shopping should reveal the significant variables that may encourage or discourage the use of this mode of shopping.

Extremely Distant and Incredibly Close: Physical Proximity, Emotional Attachment and Caregiver Burden

Informal caregivers are at risk of caregiver burden, and physical proximity to the care recipient may add to this negative outcome. Yet, individual differences in emotional proximity to the care recipient such as attachment orientations may contribute to caregivers’ comfort towards different degrees of physical proximity, leading to varying levels of burden. The current study is the first to explore the role of physical proximity on caregiver burden as moderated by attachment orientations. A sample of 162 Israeli caregivers who are active users of the Camoni website completed our online survey. Sociodemographic characteristics, including a self-reported questionnaire on the physical proximity to the care recipient, were collected. Caregivers’ attachment orientations were assessed with the Experiences in Close Relationships–Relationship Structures questionnaire. Caregiver burden was assessed using the Caregiver Burden Inventory. Multiple regression and simple slope analyses were conducted. Attachment anxiety and avoidance were positively associated with burden, whereas physical proximity was not. Attachment avoidance, but not attachment anxiety, moderated the association between physical proximity and caregiver burden, with caregivers who live closer to their care recipient experiencing greater burden when high levels of avoidance were present. Our findings reveal the complex dynamics between attachment orientations and physical proximity in the context of informal care, highlighting the need for better integration of these two interlinked constructs in both care research and practice