The Impact Assessment of Increasing Population Density on Jeddah Road Transportation Using Spatial-Temporal Analysis

Abstract

This paper aimed to measure and analyze the impact of temporal population density changes on transportation in Jeddah, a fast-growing city in Saudi Arabia. Local cooperative interpretation is first used to quantify the temporal population density and transportation changes for three sample districts in Jeddah from 2007 to 2014. Three temporal indicators were developed to measure the impact of increasing population density on transportation: (1) District Road Density Index (DRDI); (2) District Parking Index (DPI); and (3) District Trip Index (DTI). Then, a statistical analysis was conducted to examine the temporal relationship between population density and transportation for the years 2007 and 2014, by performing a Pearson correlation analysis, a paired t-test and a bootstrap for paired samples test. The results of temporal indicators revealed a significant change in population density in Jeddah from 2007 to 2014, which seems to indicate intensified demand for transportation infrastructure. The Pearson correlation analysis indicated a strong positive relationship between population density variables and temporal impact indicators. Both a paired t-test and a bootstrap for paired samples test results indicated the effect of population density changes on transportation changes in Jeddah as a result of population density regulation changes in Jeddah from 2007 to 2014. This study presents sophisticated tools to study the impact of temporal population density change on transportation in a fast-growing city, which will facilitate the measurement and evaluation of urban sustainability.