ABSTRACT
Sustainability of a human settlement is significantly influenced by a very wide range of factors, including spatial distributions of transport networks and land-use patterns, resource demand and associated environmental emissions, access to facilities and services, residential location choices, behavioural practices, community participation and knowledge, social qualities, economic factors and impacts of urban planning policies (Anderson et al., 1996; Bertolini et al., 2005). Residential land is ‘one of the major determinants of urban structure’, covers approximately 40 per cent of the total developed land in a city and is ‘the generator of most types of urban traffic’ (Romanos, 1976: 4). The two main patterns of urban development identified in sustainability literature are ‘compact’ and ‘sprawl’. A significant debate continues around the relative sustainability performance of compact or high density developments versus sprawl or low density patterns (Williams et al., 2000; Jenks and Dempsey, 2005; Newman and Kenworthy, 1989; Gordon and Richardson, 1997; Troy, 1996; Troy et al., 2005). The proponents of urban intensification argue that high density developments are more sustainable compared to low and medium densities due to their potential to reduce transport use (Newman and Kenworthy, 1999), as they could be located in close proximity to work, protect ecologically sensitive land areas and water quality (United States Environment Protection Authority [EPA], 2006) and facilitate better social interactions by creating well-designed places where people can ‘live, work and play’ (English Partnerships and Housing Corporation, 2000). Most current urban planning policies are targeted towards further intensification of urban environments as compact developments are considered the sustainable solution (Guy and Marvin, 1999).
