Wan, Zhengyue;
(2025)
Improving Transport-related
Social Impact Assessment in
Cities of Different Sizes in China.
Doctoral thesis (Ph.D), UCL (University College London).
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Abstract
The growing importance of sustainable development in China highlights the need for a better understanding of social sustainability within the transport sector. However, transport social impact assessment (SIA) at the local level, particularly in small- to medium-sized cities, lacks systematic guidance. This research investigates transport SIA practices across different-sized Chinese cities. Through a critical review of transport documents from sample cities in mainland China, five categories of transport SIA practices were identified. The study reveals that SIA has been given little attention thereby having limited influence on decision-making in transport planning in China. Current guidance on transport SIA in China is general and ambiguous, with a lack of a well-established framework and indicator set for local governments. Significant disparities in transport SIA practices were noted among different-sized Chinese cities and various project types. To further explore these gaps, interviews with Chinese transport practitioners were conducted, revealing additional areas for potential improvement. A case study of transport SIA in cities in England provided insights into strengths and limitations, offering lessons for Chinese cities. The study focuses on equity as a sample social impact to propose a practical appraisal framework. Starting with a conceptual framework of transport equity tailored to China’s unique socio-cultural and developmental context, the study identifies the range of benefits and burdens to be distributed, the disadvantaged groups to focus on, and the appropriate distributional principles. A framework for transport equity impact assessment (EqIA) was developed and tested through a workshop with transport practitioners from a sample city in China. The workshop participants agreed that the framework could be a valuable tool for incorporating EqIA into transport planning from the beginning. However, concerns were raised about the limited knowledge and resources available for evaluating social impacts at the local level. Suggestions were provided to further improve the framework.
| Type: | Thesis (Doctoral) |
|---|---|
| Qualification: | Ph.D |
| Title: | Improving Transport-related Social Impact Assessment in Cities of Different Sizes in China |
| Open access status: | An open access version is available from UCL Discovery |
| Language: | English |
| Additional information: | Copyright © The Author 2025. Original content in this thesis is licensed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International (CC BY-NC 4.0) Licence (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/). Any third-party copyright material present remains the property of its respective owner(s) and is licensed under its existing terms. Access may initially be restricted at the author’s request. |
| Keywords: | Transport Planinng, Social Impact Assessment, Social Sustainability, China, Mobility, Transport Equity |
| UCL classification: | UCL UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > UCL BEAMS UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > UCL BEAMS > Faculty of Engineering Science > Dept of Civil, Environ and Geomatic Eng |
| URI: | https://discovery.ucl.ac.uk/id/eprint/10203745 |
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