Analysis of car ownership motivation in Tokyo for sustainable mobility service and urban development

 

For instance, in Europe's case, the EU authorities have established limits to pollutant concentrations (Directive 2008/50/EC), thereby prompting the implementation of transport policies to reduce the use of cars powered by fossil fuels. These policies should ensure that the growth in the number of cars does not exceed road infrastructure (Hate & Sundas, 2013).

European cities typically follow a common standard. They are medium-sized, compact, reasonably dense, Changing car ownership Spain complex cities, with a mixture of uses and safe, healthy, and quality urban spaces that guarantee the coexistence of social diversity (Gallo Rivera & Garrison Deserter, 2012). However, the growth of the cities in the past few decades is generating structural problems: the recent trend towards sprawling based on the adoption of legislation that encourages land liberalization; a lack of strategies and instruments of territorial management; the high dependence of local governments on funding urban development (Governor ed Espalier, 2018); and segregation or zoning determined by uses and a high dependence on the private vehicle, leading to social, environmental, and energy impacts .

The effect of transportation policies on the decision to own a car needs further insights. It would provide policymakers with new tools to improve policy strategies to address sustainability (Haying, 2018). Also, the impact of these policies is related to the availability of cleaner options to encourage mode change. Nevertheless, up-to-date research contributions that empirically analyze the effect of transport policies on car ownership decisions are scarce at the international level, particularly concerning policies aimed at restricting private vehicles' use in urban areas.

This paper's main objective is to explore to what extent car ownership is influenced by the implementation of transport policies aimed at improving urban sustainability, particularly restrictions on the use of private vehicles. To that end, we focus on the city of Madrid (Spain) since this case study has some interesting characteristics. Firstly, it is one of the biggest cities in Europe, with a high supply of sustainable transport modes, and a marked urban sprawl trend. Secondly, in the last few years, Madrid has implemented two transport policies (on-street parking regulation and the implementation of a low emission zone) intended to reduce the use of private vehicles in the city center.