Akademik Veri Yönetim Sistemi
16th International Network on European Communication and Transport Activity Research (NECTAR) Conference, Toronto, Kanada, 20 - 22 Temmuz 2022, ss.104
Accessibility, by definition, is a combination of transport and land use factors along with temporal and individual characteristics that facilitate societies and individuals not only to meet their needs (Geurs and van Wee, 2004; Martens et al., 2019) but also to fulfil their potentials, wants and aspirations (Hickman et al., 2017). Although accessibility is often seen as the most crucial parameter of transport-related inequalities, it may not solely explain why some individuals or groups in society suffer from a degree of inequality. In this sense, affordability indicators (including transport and housing), vulnerability (groups exposed to exclusion from the transport system), and sense of safety and security may prevent individuals and groups from participating in daily life. This paper aims to understand how and/or whether individuals and groups who are vulnerable to exclusion benefit from high levels of accessibility. In other words, we question, even if individuals reside in relatively accessible places, how easy it is for them to participate in daily life, are there any barriers preventing them from, e.g. access to jobs, education, recreational and social needs. Istanbul is selected to provide answers to these questions. We follow a four-step approach. First, to outline the context-specific indicators, we conducted a workshop with experts from academia, central and local governments, and NGOs on understanding transport poverty in Istanbul as a part of broader research objectives. Second, we carried out an Analytical Hierarchical Process exercise with the same participants to obtain the relative ranking of indicators. Third, from a long list of 37 parameters, we determined 15 highly explanatory parameters. We utilised 12 macro-scale parameters in Istanbul to map transport poverty in a continuous surface of built macro-form. In our composite transport poverty index tailored for Istanbul, six out of 12 sub-parameters are directly related to spatial accessibility. The others represent the transport system, temporal access, pedestrian safety, affordability and air quality (as an external factor caused by transport). Fourth, we conduct a citywide survey in selected neighbourhoods representing different categories of the transport-poverty index in Istanbul. For the purposes of this paper, we turn our focus on highly accessible areas in the city and investigate the realised accessibility levels of groups who are vulnerable to transport-related exclusion. Using a mixed methodology and a tailored approach to understanding transport inequalities by employing a series of participatory methods, the paper will depict the spatial discrepancies between measured accessibility in Istanbul over transport and land use provision and realised accessibility by vulnerable groups, and inform transport policy accordingly.