Compact city policies: a comparative assessment applying a new definition of “urban” TADASHI MATSUMOTO Organisation for Economic Corporation and Development (OECD) Presentation at the RSA European Conference 2012 May 15, 2012, Delft, the Netherlands Two latest studies will be presented. By doing so, the regional approach in our research is explained.

Redefining “urban”: a new way to measure metropolitan areas 3-year work Mention the last year’s presentation

The OECD has developed a new approach to classifying urban areas 3 billion and counting of the world’s population live in some form of urban area. But around the world we don’t have the same definitions or understandings of what these urban areas are. The new OECD classification, developed with the European Commission and member countries, identifies urban areas beyond city boundaries, as integrated labour market areas. It is applied to 28 countries and identifies 1 148 urban areas of different size: small urban, medium-sized urban, metropolitan and large metropolitan It allows comparisons among the different forms that urbanisation takes (densely populated centres and their hinterlands, sprawling, polycentric connected cities, etc.)

Urban systems in a country comprise cities of different size Korea Old measurement method: 3 Large metropolitan regions New measurement method: 45 Functional urban areas of different size Seoul Daegu Busan Previously, we just identified about 90 large metropolitan areas for international comparison.

Percentage of urban population by city size (2008) Two-thirds of the OECD population live in urban areas, but the urban experience is very different in each country Around 65% of the urban population in Korea live in large metropolitan areas; In most European countries around 25% of urban population live in medium-sized areas Small: 50-200 thousands, Medium: 200-500, Metropolitan: 500-1500, Large: 1500- Percentage of urban population by city size (2008)

Percentage of population and GDP in metro areas (2008) 48% of the OECD population live in the 264 urban areas with a population of at least 500 000 (metro area) and these areas account for 53% of OECD GDP Percentage of population and GDP in metro areas (2008)

The urban population keeps growing, particularly in the hinterlands of large metropolitan areas Population growth 2000-2006 by city type and core/hinterland (average yearly growth rates)

The most dynamic metro areas are driven by different growth models moderate population growth and high GDP per capita growth high population and GDP per capita growth high population growth and moderate GDP per capita growth moderate population and GDP per capita growth Population and GDP per capita growth in the 61 fastest -growing metro areas (with GDP growth 25% higher than the country average GDP growth)

Challenges Adapt the definition of urban areas to all more countries (data availability) Develop more indicators with the new definition (data availability) Apply to policy analysis (gap between the new definition and unit of policy) Relying on commuting data

Compact city policies: an application of the new urban definition

Outline of the study To better understand the compact city concept and the implications of today’s urban contexts To better understand potential outcomes, particularly in terms of Green Growth To develop indicators to monitor compact cities To examine current compact city practices in OECD To propose key compact city strategies This was a part of OECD’s green growth strategies.

Compact City? Not at a city scale, but the metropolitan scale: Metropolitan level Urban planning approach

Key urban trends: drivers for compact city Urbanisation and the increasing need to conserve land resources The threat of climate change to cities The rise in energy prices The challenge of sustainable economic growth Demographic trend: declining population, ageing and smaller households in cities

Land is consumed at a faster rate…

…than population growth Example, Ireland, Portugal

Energy price affects location choice Stable period in 1990s, rapid changes in 2000s

More demands for smaller houses… Average household size Between 1980 and 2008. Example:Korea

Percentage of one-person households …and urban living Percentage of one-person households Example: Sweden

The contribution of the compact city to urban sustainability Sub-characteristics of the compact city Contribution to urban sustainability Environmental benefits Social benefits Economic benefits 1. Shorter intra-urban travel distances – Fewer CO2 emissions – Less pollution from automobiles – Greater accessibility due to lower cost – Higher productivity due to shorter travel time for workers 2. Less automobile dependency – Lower transport costs – Higher mobility for people without access to a car – Improved human health due to more cycling and walking – Development of green jobs/ technologies 3. More district-wide energy utilisation and local energy generation – Less energy consumption per capita, fewer CO2 emissions – – Development of green jobs/technologies – More energy independence 4. Optimum use of land resources and more opportunity for urban-rural linkage – Conservation of farmlands and natural biodiversity – Fewer CO2 emissions due to shorter food travel mileage – Higher quality of life due to more recreational activities – Rural economic development (urban agriculture, renewable energy, etc.) 5. More efficient public service delivery – Public service level for social welfare maintained by improved efficiency – Lower infrastructure investments and cost of maintenance 6. Better access to a diversity of local services and jobs – Higher quality of life due to access to local services (shops, hospitals, etc.) – Skilled labour force attracted by high quality of life – Greater productivity due to more diversity, vitality, innovation and creativity

Lower expenditure on public service This is what drove Toyama to compact city policies

Walkability to local service Distance to the nearest medical facilities

Measuring the performance of compact city: proposed indicators Category Indicator Indicators related to compactness Dense and proximate development patterns 1. Population and urban land growth 2. Population density on urban land 3. Retrofitting existing urban land 4. Intensive use of buildings 5. Housing form 6. Trip distance 7. Urban land cover Urban areas linked by public transport systems 8. Trips using public transport 9. Proximity to public transport Accessibility to local services and jobs 10. Matching jobs and homes 11. Matching local services and homes 12. Proximity to local services 13. Trips on foot and by bicycle Indicators related to the impact of compact city policies Environmental 14. Public space and green areas 15. Transport energy use 16. Residential energy use Social 17. Affordability Economic 18. Public service

Population and urban land growth, 2000-2006

Population density on urban land

Urban land cover as an indicator of urban development patterns Athens (3.4 million) Atlanta (4.6 million)

3-D density map the two cities with the same population Vancouver’s density peak (11 413) is low, but the population density on urban land is 3 133.5, three times higher than that of Portland (1 049.1).

Density gradient graph Portland (US) Vancouver (Canada)

Median commute distance for selected metropolitan areas in Canada, 1996-2006

Population living close to transport stations/network

Matching local services and homes Melbourne Vancouver

Policy practices in use Regulatory / informative Fiscal Public investment / partnership Master plan with explicit compact city goals / instruments Urban design guidelines Urban growth boundary / urban containment boundary Greenbelt Urban service boundary Agricultural / natural land reserve Minimum density requirement Mixed-use requirement Restriction on green-field development Restricting location of facilities causing high trip frequency Taxation of under-density Congestion tax / fee / charges Subsidies for densification Tax incentives for promoting development near transit stations Location Efficient Mortgage Split-rate property tax Purchasing land for natural reserve Development agreement for dense/mixed-use development Three more slides to show the overall structure of the study Source: OECD compact city survey

The five key policy strategies

Key governance strategies A vision: region-wide, integrated, long-term Articulate the roles and responsibilities of all key actors and stakeholders in the vision Vertical and horizontal coordination Accountability, transparency and reporting

Conclusions Importance of finer definition of “urban areas”, and smarter use of it Policy design and implementation at these metropolitan level - governance is key (vision, data management, finance, etc.) Innovative data collection technique (GIS, remote sensing tools, etc.) helps

Find out more: OECD (2012), Redefining urban: a new way to measure metropolitan areas, OECD Publishing. www.oecd.org/gov/regional/measuringurban OECD (2012), Compact City Policies: A Comparative Assessment, OECD Green Growth Studies, OECD Publishing. http://dx.doi.org/10.1787/9789264167865-en For more information on OECD work on regional and metropolitan statistics, visit: www.oecd.org/gov/regional/statisticsindicators For more information on OECD work on urban development, visit: www.oecd.org/gov/urbandevelopment 

Thank you Tadashi.Matsumoto@oecd.org