Agent-Based Modeling of the Formation and Prevention of Residential Diffusion on Urban Edges

Abstract

This paper presents an exploratory urban dynamics agent-based model (ABM) that simulates the relationship between the introduction of a hub facility open to residents, the interaction promotion around it, and transport policies on the sustainability of urban development through the autonomous actions of individual residents. By contrasting the model results with theoretical and empirical insights from actual cities, the validity of modeling the formation of residential diffusion on urban edges based on individual gain-maximizing daily travel and residential relocation is explained. The major contribution of the model is that it offers a new perspective on the bottom-up control of residential diffusion on urban edges, with benefits for productive human interactions at the microscale. Specifically, the model experimentally suggests the existence of a trade-off between increasing human interactions, through the introduction of an open hub attracting diverse activities and promotion of interaction around it, as well as the progression of residential diffusion. The model also suggests that the direction of urbanization is the result of collective action, and sustainable urbanization may be achieved through concerted efforts.