Levels of Economic Opportunity in New South Wales Regions

Abstract

Within a decade, Australia may experience a large decline in car usage, caused both by marked rises in petrol and other motoring costs, and a stagnation in income for lower-income households. The increases in public transport patronage already found in Melbourne are considered indicative of a long-term future trend.     

Toronto: Paradigm Reexamined

There is currently a debate about the extent to which Toronto can serve as a model for transport and land-use planning policies in Australian cities. Proponents of the ‘Toronto model’ argue that the city has achieved high rates of public transport patronage through a combination of policies including the integration of transport and land-use planning. Much of the debate turns on definitional arguments about ways of measuring public transport patronage, population density and other relevant factors. This paper reviews the evidence, using consistent and rigorous definitions, and compares Toronto with Melbourne. It concludes that Toronto is indeed a model of successful public transport, with a relatively high trip-making rate that has been maintained over many decades. It also concludes, however, that this success relative to Melbourne is not explained by land-use patterns. The differences in population density and distribution between the two cities are smaller than previously thought, and the differences that do exist do not correlate with the differences in transport patterns.     

Issues in environmental impact assessment in victoria: What has scoresby taught us?

Abstract

The recent environmental assessment of major freeway and public transport proposals for the Scoresby Transport Corridor in Melbourne has highlighted deficiencies in processes and methodologies. The paper discusses strategic environmental assessment procedures and argues that its early application has the potential to overcome some of the difficulties identified and detailed here.     

Planning transport infrastructure: examining the politics of transport planning in Melbourne,Sydney and Perth

Abstract

Australian cities have observed a “consensus turn” expressed as broad public support of greater accessibility and public transport provision as revealed in metropolitan strategic plans. In contrast large-scale road projects proposed to traverse the inner-city of three major Australian cities reveals an ongoing and deep-seated attachment by some to car-based travel in Australian urban transport planning. Comparative case studies of these three road projects in Melbourne, Sydney and Perth explores the impact that an antagonistic relationship between the state and community has on the culture of transport planning. Through observational insights, policy and media analysis and interviews with community groups, we show that this antagonistic planning culture arises when there is a fracture between metropolitan strategic plan-making and project planning, and when clear channels of communication and deliberation are undermined.     

State intervention in urban housing markets: A case study of public housing development and change in Melbourne, 1945–1980

Abstract

The paper analyses the three major public housing programmes which have been operating within Melbourne since 1945 within the framework of the theory of the state. The paper also reviews the functions and causes of state intervention and assesses the utility of the theory of the state.     

Data co-synthesis in developing public product service systems

ABSTRACT

Design and research teams working on public product service systems (PPSS) are often confronted with large data sets, presented in a complex language. This paper presents a method for how designers may translate quantitative aggregated data with a toolkit that enables qualitative co-synthesis to generate novel PPSS proposals. The toolkit development and application is shown through a specific case study in Melbourne, Australia, that focused on reimagining a public transport bus service in light of emerging propulsion and information technologies. People affected by the service were able to assist in co-synthesising existing data from transport planning literature into emergent ideas for system upgrades or even complete overhauls. A variety of multi-faceted service interventions were developed through a series of workshops with different participant groups. Workshop outcome variations further support the notion of emergence in co-creation, and reinforce the importance of running multiple sessions due to their potential impact on project outcomes. This paper proposes that co-synthesising complex data with the help of a toolkit, which may be a powerful way to inform PPSS design. An application framework is presented to summarise this process and to generate discussion towards broader application and further refinement.     

Consumer research for the public sector human services in Victoria

Abstract

This pilot study illustrates the value of consumer research in the public sector. It focuses on use, evaluation and desired improvements to human services in Victoria. The study is based on a survey of 942 respondents in five Local Government Areas, four of which are in the Melbourne metropolitan area. The paper concludes with a discussion of the policy implications of our findings and with suggestions for improved methods of conducting consumer research for Government.     

Club Goods and Local Government

Problem: Private approaches to urban service provision are becoming more popular. Some argue these approaches are more efficient and more democratic than government provision because they are voluntary. While these club approaches can shift the burden of infrastructure finance to direct groups of users, they can also fragment urban service delivery and justify unevenness in service quality across the city.

Purpose: This article explores examples of club goods, that is, common interest developments (CIDS) for housing, business improvement districts (BIDs) for commercial areas, and economic development zones (EDZs) for commercial and industrial areas, and assesses their implications for local government. Emphasis is given to how clubs internalize benefits to members of the club but shed externalities onto the broader local government system. A critical governance concern is the impact on the long-term ability of local government to coordinate across disparate elements and interests in the community.

Methods: I discuss three types of clubs ranging from totally private common interest developments (home owners associations), to partially private business improvement districts, to totally public economic development zones. These club types are analyzed in terms of economic benefits, externalities, governance structure, and broader concerns with equity and sustainability.

Results and conclusions: Club good approaches to urban infrastructure delivery enhance private investment and reduce costs to cities, but they also shed externalities onto the broader city. Although these clubs are often private associations, this article shows how they are critically supported by government, beyond the property rights requirement assumed by most theorists. A further concern is that club approaches may undermine support for equity and redistribution at the broader city level.

Takeaway for practice: Local governments are under pressure to provide public goods efficiently and engage private voluntary approaches whenever possible. The efficiency and popularity of club approaches derives in part from their ability to capture the benefits of increased investment for internal benefit. However, local government managers also must manage diversity and build public support for investment to ensure equity across the urban territory. Balancing the benefits of club goods with the need for broader urban integration is a key challenge for planners and urban managers.

Research support: None.     

Public transport decline in Melbourne: A question of density or service?

Public transport systems in Melbourne and other Australian cities have experienced steady decline in usage over the past 50 years. Concerned commentators and policy makers have debated the likely reasons behind this downward trend. The most widely held opinion is that sprawling low-density, post-Second World War urban form is the best explanation for the low levels of usage. However, some other authors argue that low usage rates can be better explained by the poor level of service offered in most areas of the city. This debate has centred largely on comparisons between Melbourne and other cities. Whilst recognising the complexity of this issue, this paper is focused on an analysis of the effect that urban density and service quality have on the operation of local public transport services in Melbourne. The paper concludes that Melbourne's low public transport usage rates are best explained by the poor levels of service quality offered by public transport systems.     

Contrasts in Reform: How the Cain and Burke Years Shaped Public Transport in Melbourne and Perth

Melbourne's public transport system, despite its extensive train and tram lines, is facing major challenges. From a point of near-extinction in the late 1970s, Perth's historically smaller public transport system is arguably now better placed to deal with growing environmental and economic pressures. The election of reformist governments in Victoria and WA in the early 1980s provided critical opportunities for public transport in both cities. This article documents the striking differences in the behaviour of the politicians, bureaucrats and civic action groups engaged in contention over transport policy in the two cities during this period. These differences had a significant influence on the performance of public transport in Melbourne and Perth today, and point to changes that will be required to improve transport policy outcomes in Melbourne

     

Canberra: Myth versus reality

Abstract

Since the onset of the recession in 1976 the Canberra urban economy has undergone radical change. This paper analyses this change in five interrelated areas: demographic structure, socio-economic ‘well-being’, housing availability, public investment and private investment. Government policies and an inadequate planning response have exacerbated the recessionary impacts. Selected planning responses are discussed with a view to further debate.     

Implementation as more than installation: a case study of the challenges in implementing green infrastructure projects in two Australian primary schools

ABSTRACT

Green infrastructure delivers a range of benefits for urban water management, amenity, human well-being, and ecosystem health. However, the implementation of green urban infrastructure can be challenging, whether in private or public spaces. In Australia and elsewhere, there is increasing investment in green infrastructure projects in schools. To date, the implementation issues experienced in schools have not been investigated. This article reports on a case study of the range of factors influencing implementation of green infrastructure projects in two primary schools in Melbourne, Australia. Interviews with diverse stakeholders in these projects revealed four key areas of concern for implementation: 1) professional roles and relationships; 2) planning and design; 3) value to the school community; and 4) engagement of the broader community. We conclude that successful implementation is not simply the installation of well-functioning green infrastructure; rather, it is an ongoing achievement that is as social as it is technical.     

Public investment in transportation infrastructures and regional asymmetries in Portugal

The objective of this paper is to investigate the regional incidence of the effects of public investment in transportation infrastructures in Portugal. Our methodological approach consists of estimating vector autoregressive (VAR) models for the national economy as well as for each of the five administrative regions in the country. In the regional models, both public investment in transportation infrastructures in the region and public investment in transportation infrastructures elsewhere are considered, thereby taking into consideration the potential existence of regional spillovers. Empirical results suggest that although public investment in transportation infrastructures has been a powerful instrument to promote long-term growth, it does so in a way that is rather unbalanced across regions. We show that public investment in transportation infrastructures has markedly contributed to the concentration of economic activity in Lisbon, the largest region in the country, and therefore has contributed markedly to the macrocephaly of the country.

City make‐overs: The place marketing of melbourne during the kennett years, 1992–99

Abstract

Over the past two decades, the emergence of a new global economic order has triggered an intensification of competition between cities for footloose investment capital and tourism. Some have proven to be more successful than others at this form of civic boosterism through the adoption of place promotion and place marketing. Unfortunately, most research on this contemporary urban phenomenon has focused on Northern Europe and the United States, not Australia. To redress this imbalance, this paper examines why intercity competition has intensified, outlining the main features of place promotion and marketing and then examining how the Kennett Coalition government place‐marketed Melbourne and Victoria within the Asia‐Pacific Rim region. It attempts to assess whether the place marketing campaign succeeded and highlights a number of limitations with this mode of urban analysis.     

Housing Reform And Fishermens Bend 1900–1913

Abstract

This paper examines the development of the Port Melbourne Council's (PMC) housing campaign between 1910 and 1913. In addition, it explores the contest between the PMC, the harbour trust and the lands department over the use of Fishermens Bend, an area of vacant crown land adjacent to Port Melbourne and the proposed site of the PMC's workers' housing scheme.     

Community Transport in Sydney: A Response to Inequity and Disadvantage in Public Transport

Abstract

This paper considers the development of community transport in Sydney and possible directions for its furture. It outlines the basis on which the community transport movement has developed and argues that the conditions which have given rise to a community transport movement are likely to be exacerbated in the future.     

Housing need assessments in San Francisco,Vancouver, and Melbourne: normative science or neoliberal alchemy?

Abstract

Governments in much of the Global North have responded to dramatic increases in house prices and rents by setting supply-side targets for new housing in regional and local plans, based on calculations of need. We apply social constructionism to assess widely divergent needs assessments underlying housing strategies in San Francisco, US; Vancouver, Canada; and Melbourne, Australia. In San Francisco, authorities use an approach required by the state government that ignores overcrowding and other ‘invisible’ criteria. In Vancouver, authorities have taken an ambitious approach that goes beyond a minimum quantum of affordable housing to discuss limits to market production. In Melbourne, the state government has chosen to ignore its own commissioned needs assessment to de-prioritize concerns around affordable housing shortages. We conclude by recommending that planners apply greater rigor in housing needs assessments, that can inform public debates around more equitable housing policy.     

Regional Planning and Economic Development in the South West Region,Western Australia

Abstract

The paper examines the influence of a regional planning and development authority (the South West Development Authority) on economic growth in the South West Region of Western Australia. Employment and population changes are analysed along sectoral and spatial criteria. The findings show that between 1983 and 1989, the Authority's influence on the creation of employment opportunities was limited, being confined mostly to some gains in the public sector and to the promotion of the region and the city of Bunbury as tourist destinations. This ineffectiveness is associated with a lack of power to attract private and direct public investment to the region.     

Housing the very poor or the young? Implications of the changing public housing policy in South Korea

Abstract

This paper discusses the reorganization of the roles of the national and local governments in public housing policy alongside decentralization, with particular reference to South Korea. Focusing on policy changes over the past decade, it reveals that rather than retrenchment amid a push towards greater local autonomy, the national government has diversified and expanded its public housing policy, and is increasingly pursuing a universal approach to public housing. Through case studies of Seoul and Gyeonggi, it also shows how the two local governments have become creative suppliers of public housing that is more customized to the local context. In particular, it highlights the rising emphasis on targeting young people rather than the very poor in public housing policies, a shift that is partly a legacy of Korea’s ‘productivist’ welfare state. The paper closes by discussing the implications of this latest policy trend, especially on local–national policy coordination.     

Issues in environmental impact assessment in victoria: What has scoresby taught us?

The recent environmental assessment of major freeway and public transport proposals for the Scoresby Transport Corridor in Melbourne has highlighted deficiencies in processes and methodologies. The paper discusses strategic environmental assessment procedures and argues that its early application has the potential to overcome some of the difficulties identified and detailed here.