Matthew Ian Burke

Urban Consolidation, Household Greenhouse Emissions and the Role of Planning

Urban consolidation has transformed Australian cities. This transformation seems likely to continue, with consolidation embedded in current metropolitan plans. One justification of consolidation is that it eases unsustainable levels of household greenhouse emissions. Here, we review this claim, and find warning signs that ‘actually existing’ consolidation does not achieve this outcome. While there is a clear need for further research, action on unsustainable household consumption cannot wait for a definitive study. We outline an immediate policy response, focusing on the role of land-use planning.

Improved modelling for urban sustainability assessment and strategic planning: local government planner and modeller perspectives on the key challenges

Many technical and modelling tools are available to support the strategic assessment of land-use and infrastructure policy proposals in local government. However, there remains a lack of guidance and general confusion as to how modelling may be integrated into the policy- and decision-making process or how to practically set up participatory model-building with practitioners. Although major advances have been made in modelling over recent decades, several unresolved implementation issues remain in practice. This paper provides the results of a panel survey, which explored what planners and modellers believe to be key modelling implementation issues, their perceived importance and a set of modelling requirements. The results suggest that planners generally feel that they do not understand models and the modelling process, and modellers, in turn, feel that they do not always understand policy development and decision-making. Problems regarding data preparation were viewed as the most important challenge. Ensuring leadership and management support and initiatives aimed at improving the communication and confidence of participants were perceived as key requirements. Limited resources, leadership support and a lack of education are some of the challenges that are perceived as important before planners and other government officers can take advantage of modelling.

Measuring Spatial Variations in Sports Talent Development: the approach, methods and measures of ‘Talent Tracker’

ABSTRACT Knowing where sports talent is produced is fundamental to identifying spatial factors in talent production and to assist with talent identification. This research develops spatial analysis methods—the ‘Talent Tracker’—to harness geographical information systems and identify regions that are over- and under-producing sports talent. The approach focuses on the professional Australian Football League (AFL), using data sourced from the AFL itself and other sources, to identify differences in regional ‘talent yield’ based on junior participation. Data from AFL draft records, informants and secondary sources identified the place of junior talent development for the 1290 players who were drafted and played at least one game of senior AFL football in the period 1997–2010. AFL national census data identified junior participation for 94 specified regions for the period 2002–09. AFL talent was assigned to these regions by using ArcGIS procedures, and the datasets synthesised to produce tables and maps of talent yield by participation for each of the 94 AFL regions. The results demonstrate the power of contemporary spatial analysis to open up new research methods for studies into sports talent production and identification. Clear spatial patterns emerge in talent yield at both the national and metropolitan scales. The results provide numerous avenues for further research to explore determining factors for the spatial patterns identified.

Travel behavior patterns of different socially disadvantaged groups: analysis of household travel survey data for a dispersed metropolitan area

This paper contributes to the understanding of transport disadvantage and the transport dimensions of environmental justice by investigating the travel behavior patterns of socially disadvantaged groups by using household travel survey data. The study described in this paper goes beyond determining the basic descriptive statistics that are commonly reported in this area of research and instead uses cluster analysis to identify socially disadvantaged households. The study then uses the six clusters generated by the analysis to identify the differences in the travel behaviors between these groups. The paper shows considerable differences in travel behavior between socially disadvantaged households that must be recognized if scholars and policy makers are to describe and respond adequately to the experience of transport disadvantage for these groups. The paper concludes with some comparative observations about the travel behavior of the disadvantaged population in dispersed rapidly growing regions and the wider implications for ensuring environmental justice in transport.

Rethinking oil depletion: what role can cycling really play in dispersed cities?

Abstract What is the role of cycling in dispersed cities under Peak Oil? This research sought to appraise the bicycles mitigating potential in an oil crisis, and to identify the specific ways planners may respond to maximise these effects. An overview of cycling in dispersed cities, focused on US and Australian cities, highlights low bicycle mode shares and low participation rates for women, children and seniors at present. Yet cycling can flourish in suburban settings, with low-density, outer-suburban communities in many European cities having very high bicycle mode shares, and strong participation across all demographic groups. Under a variety of Peak Oil scenarios, the bicycle is shown to play specific roles in supplying local mobility and access to and from mass public transport for longer distance trips. In conjunction with minor urban restructuring and public transport networking, many suburban areas could still function without reliance on large quantities of oil for access and mobility. Planning priorities include cycle network planning, ensuring current infrastructures can meet demand, links to public transport and end-of-trip facilities, and socio-cultural research into suburban bicycle sub-markets to better inform targeted behaviour change interventions.

Getting to the game: travel to sports stadia in the era of transit-oriented development

Australian sports stadia are returning to the core of cities and to sites supported by high-capacity public transport infrastructure, forming what is often termed ‘transit-oriented development’ (TOD). In addition, travel demand management (TDM) is being used to condition patrons into using public transport, redefining the patron transport experience. The scale of these shifts has significant implications for patrons, most of whom attend to watch the four respective football codes – Australian Rules (AFL), rugby league, rugby union and soccer – the dominant spectator sports in Australia. These shifts are exemplified in new stadiums such as Docklands in Melbourne and Lang Park in Brisbane. The rise of TDM and TOD also requires a new approach to determining stadium catchments, for which a method based on public transport accessibility is demonstrated. The research explores the prospects of possible AFL stadium locations on Queenslands Gold Coast and questions the decision to locate the future stadium at Carrara.

Can River Ferries Deliver Smart Growth? Experience of CityCats in Brisbane, Australia

Brisbane, Australia, introduced catamaran river ferries (CityCats) in 1996 to help reorient the city to its river, to encourage inner city densification, and to spur changes in attitudes toward public transportation. The Brisbane ferry network has grown significantly over the past 14 years and is now a key commuter and tourist transport mode that in 2008 carried 6.28 million passengers, servicing 23 locations throughout the city. Two ferry terminals will be built during the coming years, with private land developers contributing partial funding for one terminal and total funding for the other. Although CityCats seemingly had been used successfully to achieve transit- (or ferry-) oriented development (TOD), a review of key transport and land use planning policy documents found that CityCats had not been used strategically to achieve TOD. This finding suggested that the relationship between the ferries and urban development had been more pragmatic and coincidental, whereas broader strategic planning had been focused more on general smart growth principles and transport planning, and TOD policy had mainly centered on rail and buses. Developments that surround the two new ferry terminals will not be dependent on the ferries for their success; their riverfront location alone ensures success. As with previous nodes on the CityCat network, the primary motivation for developer funding of ferry terminals was as a marketing tool to increase sales.

Travel Patterns of Urban Linear Ferry Passengers: Analysis of Smart Card Fare Data for Brisbane, Queensland, Australia

Urban linear ferry systems are an emerging form of public transport in cities worldwide. The travel behavior of passengers who used CityCat ferries in Brisbane, Queensland, Australia, was investigated with data from 1,675,821 smart card fare transactions for ferry trips made over a 6-month period. Although services used small vessels and had only one main route, about 2.3% of all paid public transport journeys in Brisbane were made on CityCat and the related cross-river ferries. The ferries were used more for commuting and university trips on weekdays with significant patronage in the morning and afternoon peak periods. Use was consistent on weekend days. Although use was strong, most users were infrequent patrons; this use suggested that leisure travel was a significant component of the system. Key terminals with high use rates included those where transfer to cross-river ferry services was possible. The system offered single-stop cross-river travel at many points. However, only 15.8% of paid trips in March 2013 were made this way; 84.2% of trips continued farther up- or downriver. Integration with other buses and trains was significant; about 15% of all ferry journeys were linked to another mode of public transport. Additional investigation into how users access terminals and interact with other public transport modes is suggested. With expansion planned, the CityCat system could increase its contribution to public transport in Brisbane. Increasing the use frequency of the large pool of infrequent riders could increase patronage of the system.

What Happens When Government Workers Move to the Suburbs? Impact on Transport of Planned Decentralization of Employment in Brisbane, Australia

A resurgence of state-led decentralization activity is occurring in Australia, with governments promising to move 20% of all public servants in the city center to middle and outer suburban locations in two of the countrys largest cities, Perth and Brisbane, within a decade. The effects of these policies on transport, however, have not been assessed or meaningfully considered by the government. Therefore, this study asked the following: What will be the effects on transport of government office decentralization policies in cities with strong monocentric structures? “Decentralization” may be defined as the process by which city regions increase the proportion of jobs located outside the central business district and its immediate frame. In this paper two key research activities are reported on to address this research gap. An extensive review of previous modeling and travel behavior studies on monocentric versus polycentric urban structures and workplace relocation programs is summarized. This review highlighted mixed results for the transport sector and suggested possible research paths to identify the impacts for cities where decentralization was proposed. The review led to a large modeling effort with the multimodal Brisbane Strategic Transport model to examine the likely impacts for greater Brisbane under specific decentralization scenarios. Results are provided for modal shares, vehicle kilometers traveled, travel times, levels of service on key links, and transit patronage. The type of decentralization policy selected was found to affect reverse commuting and transit use. The results suggested that only those policies directing employment to key rail and busway nodes would mitigate potentially adverse impacts.

Urban Ferries and Catastrophic Floods: Experiences and Lessons Learned in Brisbane, Australia, and New York City

Both Brisbane, Queensland, Australia, and New York City have experienced catastrophic weather events in recent years. In January 2011, the Brisbane River flooded, inundating more than 20,000 houses; in October 2012, superstorm Hurricane Sandy hit New York City and produced a major storm surge that flooded much of the city. Ferry systems in both cities were badly affected. Comparative research was used to explore how each citys ferry operators and managers addressed the impacts before, during, and after those events. A review of published materials related to the two systems during and after the disasters was supplemented by interviews with key agency personnel in each city, conducted in mid-2013. Results suggest that how ferries are affected by floods and other disasters and how ferries may be used to rapidly respond to and provide for post-flood transport needs depend entirely on context. The linear river ferry operations of Brisbane suffered much terminal damage, and operations were unable to recommence service as a result of debris and the swollen nature of the river for many weeks after the flood. In contrast, within 2 days, New York City ferries were reintroduced on key routes and were introduced to new emergency locations to provide mobility for citizens who were unable to use other transport modes because of storm damage. The lessons learned by the operators include essential areas that authorities must address before a disaster: infrastructure design and resilience, disaster planning, insurance and legal requirements, staff management, and coordination during the reconstruction phase. Findings suggest that authorities can significantly reduce damage and improve recovery times if they plan and prepare for such events well ahead of time.