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Over the past decade research on urban thermal inequity has grown, with a focus on denser built environments. In this letter we examine thermal inequity associated with climate change impacts and changes to urban form in a comparatively socio-economically disadvantaged Australian suburb. Local urban densification policies designed to counteract sprawl have reduced block sizes, increased height limits, and diminished urban tree canopy cover (UTC). Little attention has been given to the combined effects of lower UTC and increased heat on disadvantaged residents. Such impacts include rising energy expenditure to maintain thermal comfort (i.e. cooling dwellings). We used a survey of residents (n = 230) to determine their perceptions of climate change impacts; household energy costs; household thermal comfort practices; and dispositions towards using green infrastructure to combat heat. Results suggest that while comparatively disadvantaged residents spend more on energy as a proportion of their income, they appear to have reduced capacity to adapt to climate change at the household scale. We found most residents favoured more urban greening and supported tree planting in local parks and streets. Findings have implications for policy responses aimed at achieving urban climate justice.

A better understanding of individuals' route switch behavior is required to take the best possible interventions to alleviate roadway traffic congestion. The impact of different transport infrastructure, including new roads, highways, and motorways, on reducing traffic congestion and travel time savings was reported in the literature. However, the effect of flyovers on travel route switch behavior remains unexplored, particularly in developing countries. Therefore, this study investigates individuals' route switch behavior due to the construction of flyovers in Bangladesh. An intercept survey was conducted to collect data from flyover users in Dhaka. A chi-square test was used for categorical variables and one-way ANOVA was performed for continuous variables to compare participants' socio-economic and travel characteristics with their route switch behavior. A multiple response set was used to determine why participants were not using the same or alternative travel route for regular trip purposes. Using a binary logit model, the study found a significant association between flyover users' socio-economic and travel characteristics, and their travel route switch behavior. Flyover users who changed their route traveled more kilometers and generated more trips compared to flyover users who did not change their routes. Flyover users were also switched travel routes to save their travel time. Transport planners and practitioners should consider individuals' route switch behavior when planning for new transport infrastructure to reduce traffic congestion, particularly in large cities such as Dhaka, Bangladesh. Future studies should also explore individuals' route switch behavior in other urban settings.

This study examines the association between urban form and walking for transport in Brisbane, Australia based on both panel and cross-sectional data. Cross-sectional data are used to determine whether urban form was associated with walking for transport in 2011. Panel data are used to evaluate whether changes in the built environment altered walking behaviour between 2009 and 2011. Results from the cross-sectional data suggest that individuals are significantly more likely to be walkers if they live in an area with a well-connected street network and an accessible train station. The longitudinal analysis confirms these relationships; there also was however, a significant impact of travel attitudes and perceptions on walking behaviour. The findings suggest that the built environment continues to be an important factor to encourage walking; however, interventions are also required to change social norms in order to increase the receptiveness for and participation in walking.

Food overconsumption is being addressed increasingly in the policy agendas of many advanced economies to achieve sustainable consumption. Yet, few studies define and research sustainable food consumption, particularly in understanding socioeconomic and environmental challenges and opportunities in urban environments. This paper evaluates 500 online surveys conducted in Brisbane, Australia, to explore public perceptions of food consumption and the underlying challenges and opportunities. A key finding is the co-existence of over- and underconsumption prevailing over the traditional focus on unhealthy food overconsumption. The challenges of affordability, access to healthy foods, limited retail options, and increasing carbon urban footprints complicate food consumption as a demand issue more conditional to the socio-spatial characteristics of urban environments. Opportunities for sustainable food consumption also arise in high health awareness and willingness to change dietary habits if facilitated by improved urban food provisioning. We argue that food diversity and accessibility-conducive urban environments can help transform food consumption by enabling enhanced access to affordable and nutritious foods, diversified food retail options and variety, and reduced food waste and loss-associated carbon emissions. To do so means improved global equity in food consumption and carbon footprint can optimistically reduce global food demand by 9% and generate better environmental outcomes, positively contributing to the UN’s Responsible Consumption (SDG12) and Climate Action (SDG 13) for 2030.

This study proposes a methodology for the calibration of microscopic traffic flow simulation models by enabling simultaneous selection of traffic links and associated parameters. The analyst selects any number and combination of links and model parameters for calibration. Most calibration methods consider the entire network and use ad hoc approaches without enabling a specific selection of location and associated parameters. In practice, only a subset of links and parameters is used for calibration based on several factors such as expert knowledge of the system or constraints imposed by local governance. In this study, the calibration problem for the simultaneous selection of links and parameters was formulated using a mathematical programming approach. The proposed methodology is capable of calibrating model parameters considering multiple time periods and performance measures simultaneously. Traffic volume and speed are the performance measures used in this study, and the methodology is developed without considering the characteristics of a specific traffic flow model. A genetic algorithm was implemented to find a solution to the proposed mathematical program. In the experiments, two traffic models were calibrated: the first set of experiments included selection of links only, while all associated parameters were considered for calibration. The second set of experiments considered simultaneous selection of links and parameters. The implications of these experiments indicate that the models were calibrated successfully subject to selection of a minimum number of links. As expected, the more links and parameters that are used for calibration, the more time it takes to find a solution, but the overall results are better. All parameter values were reasonable and within constraints after successful calibration.

Numerous studies have established strong connections between air traffic and economic growth at the regional level. However, without consideration of individual airports’ immediate vicinities, this aggregate view can lead to an overly simplistic conclusion about the role of airports in their urban environment. The impact of airports on local economic development is evaluated through a case study of Brisbane Airport by using primary data sourced from semi-structured interviews and a survey. The results demonstrate that the role of airports as transport hubs is not the dominant mechanism that drives industries to locate in airport areas. Rather, the local urban context is a dominant driver for development in and around airports. Based on the survey and interview results, urbanization economies have the highest significance on the landside industrial location decision, with a mean of 3.53 in terms of importance level. The findings provide a reference for policymakers regarding investment in airport expansion or construction, as well as a refinement of the understanding of the local economic impact of airports.

The goal of this study is to explore the perceptions and behaviors of drivers who cruise for parking. We conducted surveys with drivers in Brisbane, Australia, to understand potential factors that influence drivers' cruising behavior. This study reveals that errors in drivers' perception of parking cost are one of the leading factors encouraging drivers to cruise for on-street parking. Drivers are not necessarily well informed about parking costs, even when they claim to be familiar with these costs. The survey also reveals that the more informed drivers are about the local traffic and parking conditions, the less likely they are to cruise for extended periods of time. This finding demonstrates the value of traffic and parking information to effectively mitigate cruising for parking. The interview results also demonstrate that the on-street parking premium (i.e., accessibility or convenience factor) could be much larger than our common assumptions and a significant contributor to increased cruising time. Finally, this study introduces the sunk cruising cost and its potential impact on cruising time. Our hypothesis is that the effect of the sunk cost may manifest in a greater tendency for drivers to continue cruising because the time spent cruising is simply unrecoverable past expenditure. The survey data supports our hypothesis, and with findings on the drivers' misperception about parking cost and the familiarity factor, this result highlights the value of accurate and timely parking cost and availability of information to drivers to tackle the cruising-for-parking issue.

The lack of management has led to the degrading quality of public space in modern cities around the globe. Contemporary public spaces are facing challenges in terms of maintaining them as a “social space” so that they are accessible and functional for the users. Using Kathmandu as a case study, this paper explores the challenges the contemporary public spaces within urban neighbourhoods are facing in their management. The study reveals that the regulation of use is a major concern of public space management in the new neighbourhoods of Kathmandu as evident in the limited accessibility and utility of public space, due to control and commercialisation. The use of public space has also been affected by the lack of regular maintenance. The root cause of these problems lies in weak urban governance at the neighbourhood level, which has led the local community-based organisations to take a role in neighbourhood management. These findings confirm that the management of public space is a critical issue of urban development with commonalities existing across geographical regions that demand adequate consideration from the stakeholders.

Curtobacterium sp. strain WW7 is a Gram-positive, non-motile, orange rod-shaped bacterium isolated from branches of wild willow ( Salix sitchensis ) trees. The WW7 T strain has optimum growth in the temperature range between 25 and 30 °C, a pH range of 6–7.7, and tolerates up to 5.5% (w/v) of NaCl. The genome sequencing of strain WW7 T revealed a genome size of approximately 3.8 Mbp and a G + C content of 71.3 mol%. The phylogenomic analyses support the WW7 T affiliation to a novel Curtobacterium lineage, with Curtobacterium herbarum being the closest type-strain. Chemotaxonomic analysis indicates that the carbon sources assimilation profile of strain WW7 T was similar to the type strains, i.e. Curtobacterium luteum , Curtobacterium albidum, and Curtobacterium flaccumfaciens , while no assimilation of the organic acids succinate, alpha-ketobutyrate, mono methyl-succinate, and lactate was observed. Finally, fatty acid methyl ester analysis identifies anteiso -C 15:0 and anteiso -C 17:0 as major cellular fatty acids which is a common feature for members of the Curtobacterium genus. Based on the results of phylogenomic and chemotaxonomic analyses, strain WW7 T represents a novel Curtobacterium lineage, for which the name Curtobacterium salicis sp. nov. is proposed. The type strain is WW7 T (DSM 34805 T -NRRL B-68078 T ).