Regional Studies

Whitbread, M.; Bird, Heather

doi: 10.1080/09595237300185171pmid: N/A

Whitbread M. and Bird H. (1973) Rent, surplus and the evaluation of residential environments, Reg. Studies 7, 193–223. Three main topics are discussed—the typical household's housing demands and its decisions to alter the quantity consumed of particular housing attributes; evidence of community preferences for environmental attributes of dwellings and the means by which this might be derived; an outline of a study at CES to collect additional evidence of people's evaluations of residential environmental quality. Residential benefits may be measured by the household's willingness to pay for dwelling attributes. Rents may be observed but residents' consumers' surplus cannot. This paper considers the nature of this surplus in housing. Evidence of environmental benefits may be sought in housing markets where transactions costs as a barrier to movement are low and by social survey. Both possibilities are explored for the research. A coarse model is outlined of the generation and evaluation of residential environmental improvements in the city.

Flowerdew, A.D.J.; Hammond, A.

doi: 10.1080/09595237300185111pmid: N/A

Flowerdew A. D. J. and Hammond A. (1973) City roads and the environment, Reg. Studies 7, 123–136. Building motorways in cities presents formidable environmental and social problems, is very expensive and attracts severe local and sometimes national opposition. How should these factors be taken into account in planning city roads, and even in deciding whether to have them at all? This was part of the brief given to the Urban Motorways Committee, set up by the Minister of Transport in 1969, whose report, published in July 1972, gave rise to the White Paper “Development and Compensation—Putting People First”. The Committee commissioned four firms of consultants to carry out case studies and this paper describes the methods used in one of them. This study involved the use of cost/benefit analysis to analyse three proposals for road improvements prepared by a local authority but not yet implemented. Environmental and social costs were found to be an important if not always crucial element in the comparison of alternative schemes.

Hart, P.E.

doi: 10.1080/09595237300185121pmid: N/A

Hart P. E. (1973) Population densities and optimal aircraft flight paths, Reg. Studies 7, 137–151. The official policy of concentrating aircraft flight paths in Minimum Noise Routes is based on the famous Noise and Number Index (NNI) estimated from statistical surveys. This and similar measures of environmental quality are based on ordinal measures of disutility which are determinate only up to a monotonic transformation. Ordinal measures of disutility cannot be used to compile a cardinal index number such as the NNI. Moreover, the statistical surveys contain fundamental errors and should not be used, not even to compile ordinal measures. An alternative approach to this problem, based on modern welfare economics, using probit analysis, utility functions and game theory, concludes that aircraft dispersal is preferable to concentration.

Penning-Rowsell, E.C.; Hardy, D.I.

doi: 10.1080/09595237300185131pmid: N/A

Penning-Rowsell E. C. and Hardy D. I. (1973) Landscape evaluation and planning policy: A comparative survey in the Wye Valley Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, Reg. Studies 7, 153–160. Landscape quality is recognized as a resource of increasing value but techniques for its assessment are as yet unsophisticated and untested. Comparisons between existing techniques applied in an area of the Wye Valley Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty show that operator variance is high but probably not excessive bearing in mind the nature of the techniques. Landscape evaluation methods are shown to be potentially useful in A.O.N.B. designations, and also to complement grant-aided landscape improvement schemes. Existing techniques require improvements allowing for different landscape preferences of landscape users, as well as those allowing the incorporation of many landscape components in final assessments.

Sewell, W.R. Derrick; Little, Brian R.

doi: 10.1080/09595237300185141pmid: N/A

Sewell W. R. D. and Little B. R. (1973) Specialists, laymen and the process of environmental appraisal, Reg. Studies 7, 161–171. While “environmental impact statements” have assumed increasing importance in recent years, little is known about factors influencing the process of environmental appraisal which underlies these statements. This paper examines one critical factor, specialization, and indicates the role it can play in undermining the presumed objectivity of appraisals. A conceptual framework for looking at the appraisal process as a socially legitimated form of environmental construing is set forth, and links with the environmental perception literature made. Several new methods for assessing “psychospecialization” variables are outlined, together with a summary of some preliminary empirical studies.

Starkie, D.N.M.; Johnson, D.M.

doi: 10.1080/09595237300185151pmid: N/A

Starkie D. N. M. and Johnson D. M. (1973) Losses of residential amenity: An extended cost model, Reg. Studies 7, 173–181. A growing concern with the deleterious effect of modern transport upon residential amenity has encouraged the development of methods to assess and value the losses. The currently favoured approach is to assume disturbed households will either stay or leave the affected area depending upon which option minimizes their total cost. Here we suggest that changes in legislation support a modified approach to take account of amenity improving expenditures by households. The point is illustrated by the scheme of subsidized sound insulation around Heathrow Airport. Methods of calibrating the extended model are discussed.

Troy, P.N.

doi: 10.1080/09595237300185161pmid: N/A

Troy P. N. (1973) Residents and their preferences: Property prices and residential quality, Reg. Studies 7, 183–192. This paper discusses a study of the way residents of four Melbourne suburbs evaluate and rank in importance aspects of their environment related to their dwellings, convenience, the physical and social environment. A multi-variate model of environmental perception is advanced and reasons why it may not explain people's behaviour are discussed. This study is part of a study of the process of urban development. The study is designed to discover how the various actors in the development process respond to each other's initiatives and how they view the product of the process, urban space.

Willis, J.S.M.

doi: 10.1080/09595237300185181pmid: N/A

Rees, J.A.; Rees, R.

doi: 10.1080/09595237300185191pmid: N/A

doi: 10.1080/09595237300185201pmid: N/A