Evaluating equity via distributions of accessibility: A relational comparison of citizens living in affordable housing in Nanjing and Greater Manchester

Abstract

This relational comparative study focused on two cities: Nanjing in China and Greater Manchester in the UK. As a developing country, many low-income people in China cannot afford housing prices and need to apply for affordable housing. Currently, affordable housing in China is located in urban fringe areas, with insufficient transportation and other facilities. These people are suffering from transport-related social exclusion. The United Kingdom is one of the high-welfare developed countries. British affordable housing has gone from large-scale construction to mixed-community development. It aims to achieve social integration and ensure people’s housing rights. However, many disadvantaged groups still find it challenging to obtain the right to live in affordable housing. Therefore, the key research question is that comparing Nanjing in China and Greater Manchester in the UK, what is the specific situation of transport-related inequities in Chinese and British affordable housing? A mixed methods approach was adopted in this study, which aims to develop a better understanding of housing and transport equity in the distribution of the land use system and the levels of accessibility it provides between affordable residential housing and services in the wider city. Through the literature review of core concepts such as accessibility, housing equity, and transport equity, and the policy review of affordable housing and transport policies in China and the United Kingdom, the overall research framework is constructed. Then, according to the interviews and questionnaires of affordable housing residents, people’s perceptions on accessibility, housing and transport equity are obtained. Finally, this study uses analytical methods, such as structural equation modelling, to explore the impact of different factors on accessibility, housing and transport equity; uses GIS to process spatial data, thereby visualising the spatial distribution characteristics of accessibility, and applying different indices (Gini index/Theil index/Comparison index) to measure equity. The results show that the spatial distribution of affordable housing has an important impact on the accessibility equity evaluation results. Based on the equity evaluation of GIS-based accessibility distribution, it can also be found that Nanjing and Greater Manchester have different spatial characteristics, which means that the accessibility distribution of Greater Manchester is fairer than that of Nanjing. Based on these research results, targeted policy recommendations can be made for Nanjing and Greater Manchester to improve equity in the distribution of accessibility for affordable housing residents.

Date of Award	17 Apr 2024
Original language	English
Awarding Institution	The University of Manchester
Supervisor	Karen Lucas (Main Supervisor) & Martin Hess (Co Supervisor)