Modelling the Relationship between Urban Form and Social Sustainability in Malaysian Cities – Access to Local Services and Public Facilities Wan Nurul Mardiah Wan Mohd Rani Submitted for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy Heriot-Watt University School of Built Environment March 2012 The copyright in this thesis is owned by the author. Any quotation from the thesis or use of any of the information contained in it must acknowledge this thesis as the source of the quotation or information. ABSTRACT This research concerned to establish the relationship between urban form and social sustainabilityin two Malaysian cities. Kuala Lumpur and Putrajaya are the two cities selected purposely as the case study cities because of their distinctive characteristics. Specifically, this research looks in detail at the aspect of access to local services and facilities according to different aspects of urban form, such as density, building/ housing type, land use mix and layout. Urban form elements such as mixed land use and density appear to have significant impact on access and usage pattern of certain local services and facilities located within the case study cities (Kuala Lumpur and Putrajaya). Another important factor towards higher access to services and facilities within the neighbourhood is the respondents‘ perceptions of mobility. Aspects of safety also impact on the access and usage pattern of the respondents towards the services and local facilities within their local neighbourhood. However, satisfaction towards the neighbourhood does not influence the access or usage pattern of the local services and facilities. The research provides one of the first attempts to investigate the relationship between urban form and its impact upon social sustainability in Malaysian cities., It exposes local issues and problems related to the access and usage of local services and facilities within residential neighbourhoods which corresponds with issues highlighted in the National Urbanisation Policy (NUP) (Federal Department of Town and Country Planning Peninsular Malaysia, 2006). Findings suggest that local planning authorities should ensure that residential neighbourhood/ developments are well connected to local services and facilities – by improving public transport & pedestrian networks. It is also important that neighbourhood safety is properly addressed. ii DEDICATION This thesis is dedicated to my beloved husband, Mohd Noorizhar Ismail and my daughters- Nurul Aisya and Adlyna Zahra. iii ACKNOWLEDGEMENT All praise be to Allah, the Lord of the Worlds, and may His Blessings and Peace beupon our Prophet Muhammad. I thank Him for the blessings and for honouring me with His guidance in order to complete this thesis. First and foremost, I would like to express my deepest appreciation and gratitude to both my supervisors, Prof Glen Bramley and Dr. Caroline Brown for theirencouragement, guidance and support from the initial to the final level enabled me to go through the process of completing this PhD thesis. I also would like to thank my sponsors Ministry of Higher Education and Universiti Teknologi Malaysia for their continuous support. My thanks also goes to CRSIS Research Group, now known as IHURER Research Group for the financial support given to enable me to carry out the field survey in Malaysia (Kuala Lumpur and Putrajaya). My gratitude also goes to the Dean of Razak School, Universiti Teknologi Malaysia, Prof. Dr. Awaluddin for his support and approval for me to perform field study in Malaysia. I am also thankful to my colleague, Assoc. Prof. Dr Shuhana Shamsuddin for her assistance in conducting the field survey and collectingother information in Malaysia, after the researcher left for UK again. Also to the 20 students of Universiti Teknologi Malaysia that participated as interviewers in the household surveys. I am grateful to planners and officers in Kuala Lumpur City Hall, Putrajaya Corporation and Department of Town and Country Planning, Peninsular Malaysia for their cooperation in providing the required information and data to support this thesis. I also would like to extend my appreciation tothe academic and administrative staff of School of Built Environment, Heriot Watt University for their supportand assistance. I am also indebted to my many of my colleagues in School of Built Environment, Heriot Watt University for sharing their knowledge and time. Last but not least, I would like to show my gratitude to my parents, Wan Mohd Rani Abdullah and Khairiah Nik, my parents in law, Ismail Wadin and Norsiah Mohd Yusoff and all of my siblings for their motivation and support. Finally, this thesis would not have been possible without the love, supportand sacrifice from my husband, Mohd Noorizhar Ismail and daughters; Nurul Aisya and Adlyna Zahra. iv TABLE OF CONTENT ABSTRACT ..................................................................................................................... ii DEDICATION ................................................................................................................ iii ACKNOWLEDGEMENT ............................................................................................. iv Chapter 1 : Introduction .............................................................................................. 11 1.1 Introduction ....................................................................................................... 11 1.2 Research Problem ............................................................................................. 13 1.3 Research Objectives .......................................................................................... 15 1.4 Research Design................................................................................................ 16 1.5 Scope of Research ............................................................................................. 17 1.6 Summary of Research Methodology ................................................................ 22 1.6.1 Data Collection...................................................................................... 22 1.7 Limitations ........................................................................................................ 23 1.8 Thesis Structure ................................................................................................ 24 1.9 Conclusion ........................................................................................................ 29 Chapter 2 : Research Methodology ............................................................................. 30 2.1 Introduction ....................................................................................................... 30 2.2 Research Design................................................................................................ 30 2.3 Case Study ........................................................................................................ 33 2.4 Data Collection ................................................................................................. 35 2.4.1 Literature Review .................................................................................. 35 2.4.2 Primary Data Collection: Household Survey ........................................ 36 2.4.3 Sampling Design ................................................................................... 38 2.4.4 The instrument ...................................................................................... 40 2.4.5 Ethics and Data Protection .................................................................... 41 2.4.6 Pilot Survey ........................................................................................... 42 2.5 Observation and Site Survey ............................................................................. 43 2.6 Validity and Reliability ..................................................................................... 44 2.7 Data Analysis .................................................................................................... 46 2.7.1 Hypotheses Testing ............................................................................... 52 2.7.2 Statistical Analysis Package .................................................................. 54 2.8 Conclusion ........................................................................................................ 55 Chapter 3 : Sustainable Urban Form and Social Sustainability .............................. 56 3.1 Introduction ....................................................................................................... 56 3.2 Sustainability and Urban Form ......................................................................... 57 3.2.1 Understanding Urban Sustainability ..................................................... 57 3.2.2 Environment, Economy and Equity ...................................................... 59 3.3 Social Sustainability and Urban Form .............................................................. 61 3.4 Assessment of Sustainable Urban Form ........................................................... 65 3.4.1 Understanding Urban Form................................................................... 68 3.4.2 Theories of Urban Form ........................................................................ 70 3.4.3 Elements of Urban Form ....................................................................... 75 3.5 Access to Services and Public Facilities ........................................................... 86 3.6