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Evaluating the Effect of Roadside Parking on a Dual-Direction Urban Street
Published on: January 20, 2023
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Infrastructure inequality is a characteristic of urbanization
Bhartendu Pandey1,2, Christa Brelsford3, Karen C Seto2
1Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ 08540.
Summary
Urban infrastructure development often leads to unequal outcomes, particularly in emerging economies. This study reveals that infrastructure inequalities are more pronounced in South Africa than India and worsen with larger spatial scales and urbanization levels.
Area of Science:
- Urban studies
- Development economics
- Spatial inequality
Background:
- Urbanization presents challenges to sustainable development, often exacerbating inequalities.
- Infrastructure, a key component of urbanization, can perpetuate unequal outcomes due to its long-term impact.
- Understanding infrastructure distribution is crucial for addressing socio-economic disparities in urban environments.
Purpose of the Study:
- To analyze and quantify infrastructure inequalities in India and South Africa, two emerging economies.
- To investigate the relationship between urbanization, infrastructure development, and inequality.
- To provide insights into the structure and characteristics of unequal outcomes stemming from urbanization.
Main Methods:
- Developed and applied a novel inequality measure to assess infrastructure provisioning using census data.
- Utilized satellite nighttime lights (NTLs) data to measure infrastructure availability and associated inequalities.
- Compared inequality patterns across different spatial scales (finer to coarser) and between urban and rural areas.
Main Results:
- South Africa exhibits greater infrastructure inequalities than India, mirroring economic disparities.
- Urban areas show higher infrastructure inequalities than rural areas in both countries.
- Infrastructure inequalities increase with spatial scale coarseness and are more concentrated at coarser scales in India.
- Urban infrastructure provisioning inequalities correlate with multidimensional urbanization (demographic, economic, infrastructural).
- Urban infrastructure availability inequalities increase with infrastructure development and population size.
Conclusions:
- Infrastructure inequality is an inherent feature of urbanization, particularly in the Global South.
- Addressing urban inequalities requires an explicit focus on infrastructure distribution and accessibility.
- Applying an inequality lens to urbanization is essential for promoting sustainable and equitable urban development.
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