Maddi Garmendia

Urban Residential Development in Isolated Small Cities That Are Partially Integrated in Metropolitan Areas By High Speed Train

The proliferation of High Speed Trains (HSTs) in European countries has caused small, isolated cities within one hours distance by HST to become partially integrated into metropolitan processes. These cities may be considered as a combination of small provincial centres and suburban metropolitan districts. Scientific literature suggests that subcentres in polycentric urban regions are becoming more numerous and diverse, that there are doubts whether HSTs are facilitating decentralization or concentration from/to metropolises, and that fewer HST effects are taking place in big cities than small ones, where HST contribution to accessibility amelioration is greater. The article discusses the types of urban residential processes according to temporal relations with HSTs (before and after HSTs) and spatial relations (HST station location). The conduct of household survey and review of building permits and mortgage valuations was done to analyse the urban process which these cities undergo with the development of HSTs. It was found that residence location with respect to the HST station varies with the type of inhabitant (local versus immigrant, tenant versus owner, etc.) and their relation to HSTs (commuter versus non commuter, etc.). It was also shown that the HST (alongside the presence of a university) helps isolated cities to acquire territorial roles of greater importance, by virtue of attracting intraprovincial immigration and familial investment, as well as immigrants and investments from other provinces.

University Students Sharing Flats: When Studentification Becomes Vertical

This paper presents a study about studentification in a small, compact Spanish city. Unlike most of the previously analysed cases, students of this city share flats instead of living in houses in multiple occupancy. The studentification, which is hardly perceptible in the streets or the neighbourhood, becomes a reality in the staircase community, giving rise to the term ‘vertical studentification’. A survey was conducted amongst university students to locate and quantify the floating population of students. Also, long-term residents and landlords were interviewed to assess the impact of students on the communities of apartment blocks. The study reveals that studentification does happen in a high-rise morphology but in a vertical and hidden way, making policy implications less straightforward.

Assessing Spanish HSR network utility for same-day tourism

This paper presents a measurement of the utility of the High-Speed Train (HST) connection between the HST cities in Spain for one-day tourism trips. Higher utility equates to more available time at destination and lower travel time and cost.

How to Choose the Most Efficient Transport Mode for Weekend Tourism Journeys: An HSR and Private Vehicle Comparison

The present paper focuses on an analysis of the efficiency of High-Speed Rail (HSR) connections in comparison to private vehicles, with the aim of identifying the most convenient mode of transportation for weekend tourism journeys. This efficiency is centred on a person based assessment and will depend on the time available at the destination, the convenience of the timetables and travel times, and the associated costs related to accommodations and travel expenses. Because travel costs may amount to a significant share of the total expenses for recreational travel, individuals and groups may consider using a car to reach their destination, especially for journeys of short distances. However, the development of the HSR system in Spain provides an important increase in accessibility that is generating changes in the way people travel. The accessibility of the HSR service has brought an interesting alternative whose attractiveness (in terms of comfort and speed) rises with the distance travelled. In addition, RENFE (Spanish rail operator) is now reorienting its services and fares to compete in the tourism market, improving the competitiveness of HSR for weekend tourism trips relative to other transport modes. In this framework, the paper demonstrates that HSR is a real alternative, in terms of connection efficiencies, for weekend journeys, as almost half of the Spanish cities served by HSR are more efficiently connected to Madrid through HSR than by private cars. In addition, the paper offers a person-based approach that should be taken into account in future research on transport mode choices.

High Speed Rail, A New Mode of Suburban Metropolitan Transport

High Speed Rail (HSR) was conceived as an alternative to air transport to interconnect big cities and metropolises from 400 to 600 km distances. Recently these HSR lines are starting to have stations in traditional cities or new urban developments within the limits of each metropolis (between 20 and 100 km from the center). The existence of these HSR stations in the periphery of metropolises is opening up two new metropolitan transportation behavior possibilities. Firstly, the HSR used between central and peripheral metropolitan stations as a special new type of suburban metropolitan transport and secondly, peripheral HSR stations used to travel to/from other faraway places instead of using the central HSR stations. This paper describes this new type of HSR cities, lines, stations and services, and points out several cases in Spain, France, Sweden and Great Britain where this is taking place. Data from two survey campaigns just implemented on the HSR passengers between Madrid and Toledo, and Madrid and Guadalajara is used to describe and analyze their profile. The paper points out the possibilities of this new type of HSR to help the generation of metropolitan sub-centers and to extend the metropolitan influence further away, analyses the HSR traveling patterns and allows indications of the type of processes that are taking place.