A local and regional spatial index for measuring three-dimensional urban compactness growth

Abstract

The negative impacts resulting from urban sprawl are recognized as serious issues entailing environmental problems. Urban developments are moving towards a more compact form to mitigate many issues including pollution concerns, land depletion, and population growth demands. Urban compactness has been reported to be a more sustainable form of development that occurs through densification and mixed land use practices through spatial indicators that intensify the landscape. Urban modeling has been used extensively to aid in urban and regional planning as it can forecast possible scenarios of urban growth. The objective of this research is to develop and implement a spatial index for three-dimensional (3D) urban compactness to evaluate potential vertical development growth. The spatial index has two components, local and regional, and it is derived based on parameters accounting for a vertical urban growth suitability analysis, land designation, and average building height. Datasets used for this study were for the Metro Vancouver Region, Canada, a rapidly developing area with plans in place for sustainability and compact growth. The spatial index was derived for the study area for the year 2011 and projected to the year 2041 with a 10-year time interval, accounting for the spatio-temporal land use change. Results indicate concentrations of urban compactness growth near densely populated and transportation-oriented locations and also capture urban leap-frogging processes. The presented research aims to aid local governments in future planning processes related to regional sustainable development growth.