Faculty
Social Science
Supervisor Name
Jinhyung Lee
Keywords
temperature, transit, weather, exposure, walking, GIS, London, geographic information science
Description
Due to the expansion of suburban areas in many cities around the world, accessibility to public transit through walking has become a new challenge for riders. Considering the impacts of climate change in creating more extreme weather, such as extreme cold, heat, or flooding, transit riders may thus be at a higher risk of exposure for various weather-related illnesses (Fraser & Chester, 2016).
Using ArcGIS Pro and ArcMap software, and data collected from City of London’s Open Portal, the United States Geological Survey, Open Mobility Data, and Statistics Canada, the exposure and vulnerability of transit riders to cold temperatures in London were calculated and visualized. This was done by measuring the walking distance from the center of postal codes to the three closest bus stops, and thereafter calculating the average land surface temperature along the respective route. The analysis excluded areas where the average distance to the closest stop was beyond 800 meters, since it be would unlikely for an individual to walk longer distances to access public transit (Fraser & Chester, 2016). The information was then amalgamated and averaged to the dissemination area scale in order to standardize the neighbourhoods to match census tracts.
The cold exposure index was then calculated by multiplying the average walking time to the closest bus stop with the average absolute value of the land surface temperature of the respective route. A walking speed of 4.7 km/h, consistent with the average human walking speeds, was selected for the analysis.
Lastly, the median total income and visible minority population data within private households in each neighborhood in London were collected and visualized using the 2016 national census to discern any equity implications related to the vulnerability of riders.
Acknowledgements
I would like to sincerely thank my supervisor, Dr. Jinhyung Lee, for his support and encouragement to step outside of my comfort zone and develop my critical thinking skills. I would also like to thank Naser Ahmed for his guidance and assistance that made this project a success. Lastly, I would like to thank my family for their continued support, kindness, and selflessness; without them this project would not have been possible.
Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 4.0 License.
Document Type
Poster
Walking Time_Map.pdf (1627 kB)
Temperature_Map.pdf (1624 kB)
Private Household Income_Map.pdf (1622 kB)
MinorityPopulation_Map.pdf (1631 kB)
Included in
Geographic Information Sciences Commons, Human Geography Commons, Transportation Commons, Urban Studies Commons, Urban Studies and Planning Commons
Measuring the Exposure and Vulnerability of Transit Riders to Cold Temperatures in London, Ontario
Due to the expansion of suburban areas in many cities around the world, accessibility to public transit through walking has become a new challenge for riders. Considering the impacts of climate change in creating more extreme weather, such as extreme cold, heat, or flooding, transit riders may thus be at a higher risk of exposure for various weather-related illnesses (Fraser & Chester, 2016).
Using ArcGIS Pro and ArcMap software, and data collected from City of London’s Open Portal, the United States Geological Survey, Open Mobility Data, and Statistics Canada, the exposure and vulnerability of transit riders to cold temperatures in London were calculated and visualized. This was done by measuring the walking distance from the center of postal codes to the three closest bus stops, and thereafter calculating the average land surface temperature along the respective route. The analysis excluded areas where the average distance to the closest stop was beyond 800 meters, since it be would unlikely for an individual to walk longer distances to access public transit (Fraser & Chester, 2016). The information was then amalgamated and averaged to the dissemination area scale in order to standardize the neighbourhoods to match census tracts.
The cold exposure index was then calculated by multiplying the average walking time to the closest bus stop with the average absolute value of the land surface temperature of the respective route. A walking speed of 4.7 km/h, consistent with the average human walking speeds, was selected for the analysis.
Lastly, the median total income and visible minority population data within private households in each neighborhood in London were collected and visualized using the 2016 national census to discern any equity implications related to the vulnerability of riders.
Comments
Reference
Fraser, A. M., & Chester, M. V. (2016, July 29). Transit system Design and Vulnerability of Riders to Heat. Journal of Transport & Health. Retrieved June 5, 2022, from https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2214140516302122?via%3Dihub