Urban form and household CO2 emissions

Urban form could affect household CO₂ emissions by amending the level of energy used for daily travel and the amount of loss during neighborhood energy transmission. Compact urban forms with proper land-use mix are associated with lower energy use than dispersed development. Some researchers have already explored the relationships between urban form and household CO₂ emissions. The questions addressed are: is the level of household CO₂ emissions similar between monocentric and polycentric cities; how much does urban form contribute to household CO₂ emissions in cities where fast-urbanization occurs; why is the household CO₂ emissions landscape configured as such. The chapter explores the questions using empirical data collected from the four case-study cities: Beijing, Shanghai, Wuhan and Xian. It focuses on household CO₂ emissions associated with daily travel rather than total household energy use. The four cities represent polycentric and monocentric patterns of urban spatial structure.