دانلود رایگان ترجمه مقاله ارزیابی بر اساس GIS مبنی بر اثربخشی و پوشش مکانی شبکه حمل و نقل عمومی (نشریه MDPI 2017)

ارزیابی مبتنی بر GIS مبنی بر اثربخشی و پوشش مکانی شبکه های حمل و نقل عمومی در مقصد گردشگری

A GIS-Based Evaluation of the Effectiveness and Spatial Coverage of Public Transport Networks in Tourist Destinations

Abstract

This article develops a methodology for evaluating the effectiveness and spatial coverage of public transport in tourist cities. The proposed methodology is applied and validated in Cambrils municipality, in the central part of the Costa Daurada in Catalonia, a coastal destination characterised by the concentration of tourism flows during summer. The application of GIS spatial analysis tools allows for the development of a system of territorial indicators that spatially correlate the public transport network and the distribution of the population. The main novelty of our work is that this analysis not only includes the registered resident population, but also incorporates the population that temporarily inhabits the municipality (tourists). The results of the study firstly permit the detection of unequal spatial accessibility and coverage in terms of public transport in the municipality, with significant differences between central neighbourhoods and peripheral urban areas of lower population density. Secondly, they allow observation of how the degree of public transport coverage differs significantly in areas with a higher concentration of tourist accommodation establishments.

1 Introduction

The extensive growth of cities in recent decades, combined with the sustained increase in daily mobility, has meant a rise in the use of mechanised means of transport in urban areas, as well as the generation of high levels of traffic congestion and a severe environmental impact. At a time of growing concern for global warming, an increased use of public transport is seen as part of the solution [1], and an effective way of reducing external costs and the negative effects of motorised travel [2]. The relationship between transport and environmental, social and economic sustainability has been explored by a number of researchers [1,3–8].

In this context, one of the strategic objectives of many city governments is to promote the substitution of the use of private motorised vehicles with other systems that have a lower impact on the environment, the economy and public health, such as public transport, walking or cycling [9]. However, organising an alternative user-friendly transport system that is effective in providing services and facilities that can guarantee the shortest possible travel and waiting times [10] is not a simple process. A public user-friendly transport system requires consideration of crucial aspects such as accessibility to stops/stations, system mobility and connectivity with other transport modes [11]. The spatial equity of transport systems impacts on economic dynamics, personal opportunities and, ultimately, the quality of life of the population [12,13]. In other words, poor planning of territorial coverage can lead to situations of social disadvantage. In this regard, the contribution of GIS in the field of Transport Geography is more than a simple control of generic functionality [14]. GIS offer key possibilities in transport modelling [15], facilitating the storage, updating and processing of spatial data and allowing the planning, analysis, control and management of transport networks.

Numerous and widely varying research studies have used GIS tools to analyse and organise transport networks. Blythe et al. [16] examined the wide range of emerging technologies and techniques capable of integrating different public transport modes and services at urban and inter-city scale in order to improve the attractiveness and competitiveness of public transport networks to the detriment of the use of private vehicles. Arampatzis et al. [15] presented a GIS-based decision support system (DSS) to analyse and evaluate different transport policies with the purpose of improving environmental and energy efficiency in the supply of transport. Different characteristics of public transport, including spatial coverage, frequency, comfort or fleet adaptation for disabled persons, may require special analysis, given that they provide an understanding of the efficacy and equity of the service provided for the citizens. Along these lines, Murray [7] identified the inefficiencies of the coverage of access to public transport in the city of Brisbane using GIS-based spatial analysis techniques. Moro and Villaescusa [17] studied spatial accessibility to primary schools in Bilbao, basing their work on the hypothesis that the criteria used to assign students to schools were not the most appropriate, with some students possibly being forced to commute for longer spatial and temporal distances than necessary. Salado et al. [18] proposed a set of indicators related to measurements of the equity and efficiency of the urban public transport service of the city of Alcala de Henares (Madrid). Saghapour et al. [2], in the city of Melbourne (Australia), developed a new measure of accessibility to public transportation that integrated transport service frequencies and population density. The results show that the use of public transport is substantially higher in areas with a higher rate of accessibility. Delmelle and Casas [19] evaluated the spatial equity of the express bus transport service in the city of Cali (Colombia) by means of exploration patterns of accessibility in relation to the socioeconomic level of the city neighbourhoods. They demonstrated that transport network accessibility was higher for middle-class neighbourhoods than for those of higher and lower socioeconomic classes. Cardozo et al. [20] analysed the relationship between urban and socioeconomic variables and the demand for public transport in the subway system of Madrid.

Other interesting and particularly innovative applications have been developed by Benenson et al. [21] and Stenneth et al. [22]. The first presented an extension of ArcGIS©, Urban.Access, which allows to estimate and compare the accessibility of different modes of transport to the workplace and other places of interest. Meanwhile, the second proposed a methodology for identifying user mode of transport by means of GPS sensors in their mobile devices and knowledge of the transport network (real-time bus location; spatial information of the railway line, and spatial data about bus stops and stations).