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- The potential impact of cycling on urban transport energy and modal share: a GIS-based methodologyPublication . Monteiro, João Pedro Medina; Sousa, Nuno; Jesus, Eduardo Natividade; Rodrigues, João CoutinhoThis article presents a methodology to estimate the maximum potential impact of a well- built and conserved cycling infrastructure, measured as modal share for accessibility trips, as well as the associated transport energy that can be saved in those trips. The methodology uses Geographic Information Systems (GIS) to estimate active trip probabilities, from which the output variables can be obtained. It was applied to a case study of a mid-sized city in Southern Europe, and results show that an adequate cycling infrastructure can achieve cycling mode share in that city on par with the world’s most cycling-friendly cities. Concerning transport energy, a full-cycling scenario is estimated to reduce fossil energy intensity by approximately 20%, mainly by inducing a mode change for residents on the closest outskirts. It is also argued that cycling investment in commuting routes will have the most impact on reducing fossil transport energy.
- Benchmarking city layouts: a methodological approach and an accessibility comparison between a real city and the garden cityPublication . Monteiro, João Pedro Medina; Sousa, Nuno; Jesus, Eduardo Natividade; Rodrigues, João CoutinhoThis article presents a comparative accessibility study between a real city and its redraft as a Garden City. The benchmarking methodology involves defining and evaluating a location-based accessibility indicator in a GIS environment for the city of Coimbra, Portugal, and for the same city laid out as a Garden City, with the same number of inhabitants, jobs, and similar number of urban facilities. The results are derived as maps and weighted average distances per inhabitant to the facilities and jobs, and show that, for the Garden City, average distances drop to around 500 m for urban facilities and 1500 m for the combination of facilities and jobs, making much of the city accessible by walking and practically the whole of it accessible by cycling, with positive impact on transport sustainability and accessibility equity. The methodology can be extended to other benchmarking indicators and city layouts, and the quantitative results it yields make a valuable contribution to the debate on the ideal layout of cities. Moreover, it gives directions on how to improve real cities to address current and future sustainability concerns.
- Filling in the spaces: compactifying cities towards accessibility and active transportPublication . Monteiro, João Pedro Medina; Para, Marvin; Sousa, Nuno; Jesus, Eduardo Natividade; Ostorero, Carlo; Rodrigues, João CoutinhoCompactification of cities, i.e., the opposite of urban sprawl, has been increasingly presented in the literature as a possible solution to reduce the carbon footprint and promote the sustainability of current urban environments. Compact environments have higher concentrations of interaction opportunities, smaller distances to them, and the potential for increased active mode shares, leading to less transport-related energy consumption and associated emissions. This article presents a GIS- based quantitative methodology to estimate on how much can be gained in that respect if vacant spaces within a city were urbanized, according to the municipal master plan, using four indicators: accessibility, active modal share, transport energy consumption, and a 15-minute city analysis. The methodology is applied to a case study, in which the city of Coimbra, Portugal, and a compact version of itself are compared. Results show the compact layout improves all indicators, with averages per inhabitant improving by 20% to 92%, depending on the scenario assumed for cycling, and is more equitable.
- Benchmarking real and ideal cities: a multicriteria analysis of city performance based on urban formPublication . Monteiro, João Pedro Medina; Sousa, Nuno; Rodrigues, João Coutinho; Jesus, Eduardo NatividadeThe debate on the ideal urban layout, or form has long been an active topic of research. As cities expand and population demands rise, the quest for efficient and sustainable urban designs gains greater significance, necessitating objective and quantitative evaluation of their performance. This article adds to the debate by presenting a multicriteria analysis of city performance, based on quantitative indicators obtainable from geographic information systems calculations, which focus on sustainability and physical pleasantness issues. Indicator values were derived for a real city, its infill version, and five redrafts as classic city models existing in the literature. The city layouts were then compared using the TOPSIS multicriteria ranking method, results showing a preference for the more compact urban layouts due to the multiple advantages of having shorter distances between supply and demand points. The methodology provides quantitative insights on city performance and efficiency and can be used to compare options for city expansions or major urban regeneration projects.