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International Journal of Environment Science and Technology
Center for Environment and Energy Research and Studies (CEERS)
ISSN: 1735-1472 EISSN: 1735-1472
Vol. 11, No. 8, 2014, pp. 2347-2358
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Bioline Code: st14225
Full paper language: English
Document type: Research Article
Document available free of charge
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International Journal of Environment Science and Technology, Vol. 11, No. 8, 2014, pp. 2347-2358
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Oil vulnerability in the greater Toronto area: impacts of high fuel prices on urban form and environment
Akbari, S. & Nurul Habib, K.
Abstract
The rising cost of fossil fuel is a recognized
phenomenon, but its impact at the household level is still
widely unknown. Understanding how the socioeconomic
impacts of rising fuel prices might be distributed across
urban areas is a critical issue that is necessary for sustainable
urban transportation planning. This study has
refined the vulnerability index for petrol expense rises
(VIPER) framework [previously proposed by Dodson and
Sipe Urban Stud 44(1):37–62, (2007)] by incorporating
travel survey data to better represent households’ car
dependence. Through this modified VIPER framework, we
seek to understand how the socioeconomic impact of rising
fuel costs will be distributed across the greater toronto area.
The findings of this research reveal a pattern in the distribution
of oil vulnerability that depicts a three-ring configuration:
expanding outwards from the lowest oil
vulnerability in the urban core (1st ring), followed by the
highest oil vulnerability in the city’s inner suburbs (2nd
ring), and a transition to a lower oil vulnerability in the
suburban areas (3rd ring). Such results reveal the need for
transportation and land use policy measures that tackle the
transportation-related social and economic disadvantages
due to high fuel prices in the future. The transportation and
land use policy measures referred to in this paper focus on
the reduction in private automobile use. Therefore, those
measures aimed at mitigating oil vulnerability may also
have the environmental benefits of reducing greenhouse
gas emissions and preserving greenfields.
Keywords
Oil vulnerability; Automobile dependence; Rising oil prices; Urban spatial analysis
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