Concern among state legislators about rural development and rural land use is not new. In many st... more Concern among state legislators about rural development and rural land use is not new. In many states, agriculture remains an important feature of the economic, cultural, and political landscape. As rural incomes, populations, and prosperity have declined, states have adopted a variety of policies in response. Rural land and development policies in most states, however, are often more symbolic than influential, poorly integrated, and grossly misguided (Audirac, 1997). For rural areas, very few states mandate or facilitate rural comprehensive planning, often due to opposition from rural legislators. Farmlands (cropland and grazing land) constitute the largest share of land use by acreage in the country and have an even higher share in the rural areas (USDA, 2000). Although a relatively smaller and decreasing part of the overall economy, farmland uses employ 21 percent of the nation's workforce (including processing, wholesale and retail trade of farming goods) and about 7 percent...
Transportation Research Board 93rd Annual MeetingTransportation Research Board, 2014
This paper aims to find whether all transit-oriented development (TOD) can reduce travel distance... more This paper aims to find whether all transit-oriented development (TOD) can reduce travel distance and vehicle travels while increasing transit ridership, and which has a greater impact on transportation focus on housing policy or job location. The authors compare the impact of different TOD scenarios and measure the elasticity of travel demand as a result of the household or (and) employment growth reallocating into transit areas. The authors obtain the results using a validated transportation demand model (MSTM) for Maryland and future growth in 2030. The results suggest that TOD is effective in increasing transit mode share and decreasing vehicle miles traveled; but only some can shorten trip distance. The authors find (1) relocating employment can increase transit mode share more than relocating households and (2) relocating employment increases total average trip length, while relocating households alone tends to decrease trip length.
The objective of the COMPASS project was to provide an authoritative comparative report on change... more The objective of the COMPASS project was to provide an authoritative comparative report on changes in territorial governance and spatial planning systems in Europe from 2000 to 2016. This Final Report presents the main findings, conclusions and policy recommendations. The COMPASS project compares territorial governance and spatial planning in 32 European countries (the 28 EU member states plus four ESPON partner countries). COMPASS differs from previous studies in that the accent is not on a snapshot comparison of national systems, but on identifying trends in reforms from 2000 to 2016. It also seeks to give reasons for these changes with particular reference to EU directives and policies, and to identify good practices for the cross-fertilisation of spatial development policies with EU Cohesion Policy. The research is based on expert knowledge with reference wherever possible to authoritative sources. Experts with in-depth experience of each national system were appointed to contri...
By most measures, Illinois is a large but slow-growing state. Its land area includes 35.6 million... more By most measures, Illinois is a large but slow-growing state. Its land area includes 35.6 million acres and its 1999 population is estimated at 12.1 million people. Between 1980 and 1999, the population of Illinois grew by 701,000, or 5.8 percent.1 But statewide population and population density figures mask a significant spatial reconfiguration of the Illinois landscape. Between 1980 and 1999, the population of 12 Illinois counties grew by more than 20 percent while the population of 61 counties declined. The population of McHenry, Illinois ’ fastest growing county, grew 67 percent; the population of Alexander, the slowest growing county, declined 19 percent. Between 1960 and 1990, the Chicago metropolitan area, the state’s largest, grew 14 percent in population while its land area grew 66 percent; Champaign-Urbana, one of the state’s smallest metropolitan areas, grew 48 percent in population while its land area grew 159 percent (APA 1998). According to the Natural Resources Conser...
The “Sustainable neighborhoods” has become widely proposed objective of urban planners, scholars,... more The “Sustainable neighborhoods” has become widely proposed objective of urban planners, scholars, and local government agencies. However, after decades of discussion, there is still no consensus on the definition of sustainable neighborhoods (Sawicki and Flynn, 1996; Dluhy and Swartz 2006; Song and Knaap,2007; Galster 2010). To gain new information on this issue, this paper develops a quantitative method for classifying neighborhood types. It starts by measuring a set of more than 100 neighborhood sustainable indicators. The initial set of indicators includes education, housing, neighborhood quality and social capital, neighborhood environment and health, employment and transportation. Data are gathered from various sources, including the National Center for Smart Growth (NCSG) data inventory, U.S. Census, Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA), Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), many government agencies and private vendors. GIS mapping is used to visualize and identify variations in...
... Nikhil Kaza†, Gerrit Knaap†,, Douglas Meade†,†, ... Tool) model is unique among large-scale m... more ... Nikhil Kaza†, Gerrit Knaap†,, Douglas Meade†,†, ... Tool) model is unique among large-scale models of the US economy in that it is based on an input-output core, and builds up macroeconomic forecasts from the bottom up (see eg Meade, 2001; McCarthy 1991) Investments ...
1 2 Urban form studies have generally used regional density vs. sprawl land use scenarios to asse... more 1 2 Urban form studies have generally used regional density vs. sprawl land use scenarios to assess 3 travel behavior outcomes. The more nuanced but nonetheless important allocation of jobs and 4 housing and their relationship to each other as a factor in travel behavior has received much less 5 attention. That relationship is explored in this state-wide urban form study for Maryland. This is 6 a state where county land use has a long tradition of growth management, but one whose 7 regional and statewide implications have not been evaluated. How does a continuation of the 8 County level smart growth regime play out statewide compared to other scenarios of job and 9 housing distribution that are driven by higher driving costs or transit oriented development goals 10 or local zoning rather than local policy-driven projections? Answers are provided through the 11 application of a new statewide travel demand model. The findings suggest that the debate should 12 move beyond walkability, ...
Concern among state legislators about rural development and rural land use is not new. In many st... more Concern among state legislators about rural development and rural land use is not new. In many states, agriculture remains an important feature of the economic, cultural, and political landscape. As rural incomes, populations, and prosperity have declined, states have adopted a variety of policies in response. Rural land and development policies in most states, however, are often more symbolic than influential, poorly integrated, and grossly misguided (Audirac, 1997). For rural areas, very few states mandate or facilitate rural comprehensive planning, often due to opposition from rural legislators. Farmlands (cropland and grazing land) constitute the largest share of land use by acreage in the country and have an even higher share in the rural areas (USDA, 2000). Although a relatively smaller and decreasing part of the overall economy, farmland uses employ 21 percent of the nation's workforce (including processing, wholesale and retail trade of farming goods) and about 7 percent...
Transportation Research Board 93rd Annual MeetingTransportation Research Board, 2014
This paper aims to find whether all transit-oriented development (TOD) can reduce travel distance... more This paper aims to find whether all transit-oriented development (TOD) can reduce travel distance and vehicle travels while increasing transit ridership, and which has a greater impact on transportation focus on housing policy or job location. The authors compare the impact of different TOD scenarios and measure the elasticity of travel demand as a result of the household or (and) employment growth reallocating into transit areas. The authors obtain the results using a validated transportation demand model (MSTM) for Maryland and future growth in 2030. The results suggest that TOD is effective in increasing transit mode share and decreasing vehicle miles traveled; but only some can shorten trip distance. The authors find (1) relocating employment can increase transit mode share more than relocating households and (2) relocating employment increases total average trip length, while relocating households alone tends to decrease trip length.
The objective of the COMPASS project was to provide an authoritative comparative report on change... more The objective of the COMPASS project was to provide an authoritative comparative report on changes in territorial governance and spatial planning systems in Europe from 2000 to 2016. This Final Report presents the main findings, conclusions and policy recommendations. The COMPASS project compares territorial governance and spatial planning in 32 European countries (the 28 EU member states plus four ESPON partner countries). COMPASS differs from previous studies in that the accent is not on a snapshot comparison of national systems, but on identifying trends in reforms from 2000 to 2016. It also seeks to give reasons for these changes with particular reference to EU directives and policies, and to identify good practices for the cross-fertilisation of spatial development policies with EU Cohesion Policy. The research is based on expert knowledge with reference wherever possible to authoritative sources. Experts with in-depth experience of each national system were appointed to contri...
By most measures, Illinois is a large but slow-growing state. Its land area includes 35.6 million... more By most measures, Illinois is a large but slow-growing state. Its land area includes 35.6 million acres and its 1999 population is estimated at 12.1 million people. Between 1980 and 1999, the population of Illinois grew by 701,000, or 5.8 percent.1 But statewide population and population density figures mask a significant spatial reconfiguration of the Illinois landscape. Between 1980 and 1999, the population of 12 Illinois counties grew by more than 20 percent while the population of 61 counties declined. The population of McHenry, Illinois ’ fastest growing county, grew 67 percent; the population of Alexander, the slowest growing county, declined 19 percent. Between 1960 and 1990, the Chicago metropolitan area, the state’s largest, grew 14 percent in population while its land area grew 66 percent; Champaign-Urbana, one of the state’s smallest metropolitan areas, grew 48 percent in population while its land area grew 159 percent (APA 1998). According to the Natural Resources Conser...
The “Sustainable neighborhoods” has become widely proposed objective of urban planners, scholars,... more The “Sustainable neighborhoods” has become widely proposed objective of urban planners, scholars, and local government agencies. However, after decades of discussion, there is still no consensus on the definition of sustainable neighborhoods (Sawicki and Flynn, 1996; Dluhy and Swartz 2006; Song and Knaap,2007; Galster 2010). To gain new information on this issue, this paper develops a quantitative method for classifying neighborhood types. It starts by measuring a set of more than 100 neighborhood sustainable indicators. The initial set of indicators includes education, housing, neighborhood quality and social capital, neighborhood environment and health, employment and transportation. Data are gathered from various sources, including the National Center for Smart Growth (NCSG) data inventory, U.S. Census, Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA), Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), many government agencies and private vendors. GIS mapping is used to visualize and identify variations in...
... Nikhil Kaza†, Gerrit Knaap†,, Douglas Meade†,†, ... Tool) model is unique among large-scale m... more ... Nikhil Kaza†, Gerrit Knaap†,, Douglas Meade†,†, ... Tool) model is unique among large-scale models of the US economy in that it is based on an input-output core, and builds up macroeconomic forecasts from the bottom up (see eg Meade, 2001; McCarthy 1991) Investments ...
1 2 Urban form studies have generally used regional density vs. sprawl land use scenarios to asse... more 1 2 Urban form studies have generally used regional density vs. sprawl land use scenarios to assess 3 travel behavior outcomes. The more nuanced but nonetheless important allocation of jobs and 4 housing and their relationship to each other as a factor in travel behavior has received much less 5 attention. That relationship is explored in this state-wide urban form study for Maryland. This is 6 a state where county land use has a long tradition of growth management, but one whose 7 regional and statewide implications have not been evaluated. How does a continuation of the 8 County level smart growth regime play out statewide compared to other scenarios of job and 9 housing distribution that are driven by higher driving costs or transit oriented development goals 10 or local zoning rather than local policy-driven projections? Answers are provided through the 11 application of a new statewide travel demand model. The findings suggest that the debate should 12 move beyond walkability, ...
Uploads
Papers by gerrit knaap