Transit-Oriented Development: Planning Tool for Sustainable and Affordable Urban Development
Case of Delhi
Urbanization all over the world is causing concern not only amongst the urban planners but also amongst the world leaders, particularly in the developing world. The three ‘P s associated with urbanization, that is, population, poverty, and pollution are major problems that require relatively low-cost affordable solutions. Cities all over the world are facing problems of people migrating to cities seeking better opportunities for various reasons, ranging from poverty related issues to political. The appalling conditions in slums render access to clean water and health services far from affordable, thereby resulting in various environmental hazards. Densification of central areas within the cities causes extreme traffic congestion, air pollution, greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, and climate change considerations. Planning intervention is required to bring in some kind of symmetry in the quality of life in cities which requires capital-intensive investment from the private sector and a slew of tax incentives/ reforms from the government sector. Due to depressed real estate market, large investments in redevelopment of cities are unlikely. What then is a viable solution making city development sustainable and, at the same time, affordable.
Advent of Transit- Oriented Development
Solutions for the redevelopment and regeneration of cities have to evolve from within. Redevelopment should result in community development that includes a mix of housing, offices, shops, and other amenities integrated within walkable neighbourhoods and located within easy reach of public transportation centres.
Such development/redevelopment is called transit-oriented development (TOD). It brings with it a relatively low cost and affordable solutions to property development as residents themselves are stakeholders/ partners in the redevelopment/ regeneration of the area. They contribute in terms of property/ land parcels and partial cost of construction, whereas a private developer brings in investment in lieu of additional floor area made available to him by stakeholders/ state/local bodies by way of development control regulations. It is an alliance of convenience. TOD is seen as a relatively low-cost solution to problems ranging from housing affordability, traffic congestion, to global warming.
What is TOD?
TOD as a concept is not new. Historically, cities have grown rapidly along transportation networks, may it be railways or roads and internal networks within the cities. Before the arrival of automobiles, cities were compact and had mixed-land uses. Most of the development was around the transit routes because it provided better accessibility.
In the Indian scenario, Mumbai is a good case in point as the city expanded in a linear fashion along the railway lines, that is, along the central and western railway routes. This is one of the major reasons why the local trains are crucial to the survival of Mumbai city.
Similarly, the city of Jaipur, though planned in a gridiron pattern, uses a compact mix-use development along the major roads and streets. Therefore, TOD in many ways is just another name for traditional urban development.
In the past, life in towns moved at a slow pace and was socially more satisfying. Today the situation has changed. Urban cities are facing severe problems, such as traffic congestion, air pollution, and the uncertainties of climate change conditions.
In addition to this, large-scale migration to the cities has intensified the existing problem. Living in highly segregated urban neighbourhoods causes changes in lifestyle and within the social fabric as well. Given a chance, migrants may like to live in a mixed land use environment where people-to people contact is easy, thereby enhancing social security and safety. Cities are also investing a lot in transit systems, such as metros, bus rapid transit (BRT) system, new rail roads or the extension of old ones. As TOD also propagates high-density misuse development, TOD