Plenary Lecture

Planning for Metropolitan Regions: The Land-Use & Transportation Connection

Professor Ardeshir Anjomani
School of Urban and Public Affairs
The University of Texas at Arlington
USA
E-mail: anjomani@uta.edu
 

Abstract: Today, almost every urban region all over the world is continuously planning for the future development of their region with a particular emphasis on transportation and implementing these plans that are affecting almost every aspect of life in each of these regions at an enormous cost in terms of not only financial but also externalities. I will identify and discuss the interesting interconnections and interactions and methodological challenges regarding land-use and transportation planning, as well as other major systems affecting the development of urbanized regions. While the models and methods utilized in forecasting and planning towards these efforts has come a long way, and we have also seen the maturation of these approaches, there is still a lot left to be developed and to be included in these models and methods. Theoretical and technological advancement of the last few decades has instigated a new wave of attention, research and further developments of the models and techniques from a variety of disciplines has emerged. The integration of land use and travel demand models has been a major outcome of these interdisciplinary efforts in the recognition of and allowing for the interactions and feedback loops that can occur across these twin systems. Yet, there are other important aspects that are not fully included in practice or theory, and are insufficient towards a comprehensive approach in land-use/transportation planning. The increasing social consciousness on environmental concerns has major implications on the modeling approaches because of land-use/transportation and the way in which developments impact the environment. Moreover, the recent global economic contraction in the context of continuous urbanization and growth of metropolitan regions is a major factor influencing developments in the United States and around the world.

Brief Biography of the Speaker:
Ardeshir (Ard) Anjomani is a professor of City and Regional Planning at the School of Urban and Public Affairs, The University of Texas at Arlington. Dr. Anjomani has more than thirty years of academic and professional experience in different aspects of City planning and urban and regional development. His areas of expertise include analysis of urban development, land-use planning and urban design, land suitability analysis and use of GIS technology for spatial analyses, transportation planning and community and economic development. His publications have appeared in International Journal of Humanities, Socio-Economic Planning Sciences, International Journal of Public Administration, Journal of Architecture and planning Research, Journal of Planning Education and Research and Journal of Urban Affairs among others. He is the Associate Editor of the International Journal of Society Systems Science (IJSSS) and he has served on the Editorial Boards of The Journal of Architectural and Planning Research, 1983-present, Computer, Environment and Urban Systems, 1988-1992, and International Journal of Sustainable Society (IJSSoc), 2007-present. Dr. Anjomani presently is serving as Chair of Ph.D. Program in Urban Planning & Public Policy and Master's in City & Regional Planning. He also is the Coordinator for the GIS Certificate Program (2000-present) and has been Coordinator and Graduate Advisor for the City and Regional Planning Program for six years. He has been the University of Texas at Arlington nominee for the State of Texas Piper Professorship Award for outstanding scholarly and academic achievement, April 2000. He has an M.Arch. degree from the University of Tehran, an M.Pl. and a Ph.D. in City and Regional Planning from the University of Southern California. Dr. Anjomani teaches graduate courses in urban structure and city planning, transportation planning and modeling, research and planning methods, and GIS and land use analysis. For the more than two decades his research concentrations have been on study and forecasting of metropolitan growth and urban form, and land-use planning through applications of planning methods and GIS technology. He has received and completed several funded research and presently is working on a land use/transportation modeling research funded by the Texas Department of Transportation. He has also been consultant in several projects dealing with comprehensive land-use/thoroughfare planning, development planning, urban design, corridor studies, downtown development studies and economic development. Dr. Anjomani is a specialist in the various aspects of city planning and the related research and analysis. He combines experience in professional planning and design with academic and applied research and teaching experience. The community related projects that have been developed under his direction have been seven times recipient of American Planning Association Texas Chapter Student Planning Award.