From integrated aims to fragmented outcomes: urban intensification and transportation planning in the Netherlands

Abstract

Intensification of cities has been a planning aim in many countries over the last decades. A major reason for this is the expectation that urban intensification leads to better accessibility by sustainable transportation modes and therefore contributes to increasing their share. A positive feedback loop exists between the planning of high-capacity transportation networks and intensification of land uses around these transportation networks. Urban intensification policies acknowledge this. However, the integration of transport planning and land-use planning, which one would and should expect as a consequence of this acknowledgement, does not necessarily follow. In the Netherlands, an “implementation gap” in the transport and land-use planning process aimed at urban intensification can be identified, which prevents the positive feedback loop from happening. While similar issues have been identified elsewhere, there is still a lack of knowledge of where in the planning process the implementation gap emerges. This knowledge is essential if the gap is to be closed. To understand this, analysis of various planning documents, interviews, and participant observation are used. The results show that the most critical phases in the planning process are those in which aims need to be translated into actions and actions into performance indicators.