Greenfield Drivers: Residential choice, transport, and the subjective experience of travel in the greenfield suburbs A case study in Christchurch, New Zealand A thesis submitted in fulfilment of the requirements for the Degree of Master of Science in Geography at the University of Canterbury Anne Heins July 2015 1 Abstract Using greater Christchurch as a case study, this research seeks to understand the key drivers of residential choice of families with children who live in recently developed, low-density greenfield subdivisions. In particular, the research examines the role that transport-related implications play in families’ choice of residence and location. It also explores the lived experience of the quotidian travel of these households, and the intrinsic value of their time in the car. While the research is situated in one particular location, it is designed to gain an understanding of urban processes and residents’ experiences of these as applicable to broader settings. Concerns about the pernicious environmental, fiscal, and wellbeing effects of sprawling urban form have been growing over the past few decades, inciting many cities including Christchurch to start shifting planning policies to try and achieve greater intensification and a denser development pattern. The 2010/2011 Christchurch earthquake sequence and its destruction of thousands of homes however created huge pressure for housing development, the bulk of which is now occurring on greenfield sites on the peripheries of Christchurch City and its neighbouring towns. Drawing on the insights provided by a wide body of both qualitative and quantitative literature on residential choice, transport and urban form, and mobilities literature as a basis, this research is interested in the attraction of these growing neighbourhoods to families, and puts the focus firmly on the attitudes, values, motivations, decisions, and lived experience of those who live in the growing suburbs of Christchurch. i Table of Contents Abstract ..................................................................................................................................................................................i Acknowledgements ....................................................................................................................................................... vii Glossary of terms ............................................................................................................................................................ vii Chapter 1: Introduction and research background ............................................................................................ 1 Introduction ........................................................................................................................................................ 1 Research background ...................................................................................................................................... 1 Aims and research questions ....................................................................................................................... 5 Thesis outline ..................................................................................................................................................... 5 Chapter 2: Residential choice, transport and the experience of travel – A literature review ........... 8 Introduction ........................................................................................................................................................ 8 Residential choice ............................................................................................................................................. 8 Transport research—complements and conflicts ............................................................................ 15 Land use, urban form and transport ...................................................................................... 16 Preference and self-selection—problematizing the urban form/transport relationship ...................................................................................................................................................... 19 Transport and housing affordability ...................................................................................................... 21 The impact of commuting on wellbeing ............................................................................................... 26 The value of time spent in transit and the subjective experience of driving ........................ 27 The desire for daily travel ........................................................................................................... 28 Driving as transition time ........................................................................................................... 29 The car as a soundscape .............................................................................................................. 30 The car as a caring and relational space ............................................................................... 31 The pleasure of driving ................................................................................................................ 32 ii Conclusion ......................................................................................................................................................... 33 Chapter 3: The city of Christchurch and the greater Christchurch region ............................................ 35 Introduction ..................................................................................................................................................... 35 Christchurch’s Central City ........................................................................................................................ 37 Greater Christchurch Urban Development Strategy ....................................................................... 39 The 2010/2011 earthquake sequence .................................................................................................. 41 The earthquakes’ impact on residential property ............................................................ 41 The earthquakes’ impact on employment in the central city ....................................... 44 Transport impacts of the earthquakes, and motorway investment .......................... 44 Transport and housing patterns in Christchurch ............................................................................. 46 The Land Use Recovery Plan ..................................................................................................................... 47 Conclusion ......................................................................................................................................................... 47 Chapter 4: Methodology and methods .................................................................................................................. 48 Introduction ..................................................................................................................................................... 48 Positionality and disclosure ...................................................................................................................... 49 Research approach ........................................................................................................................................ 51 Selection of research sites .......................................................................................................................... 52 Linden Grove .................................................................................................................................... 55 Halswell .............................................................................................................................................. 55 Rolleston ............................................................................................................................................ 56 Rangiora ............................................................................................................................................. 57 Sampling and recruiting participants .................................................................................................... 57 Household structure and demographics of respondents .............................................................. 59 Research approach and data collection ................................................................................................ 61 Travel diaries ................................................................................................................................... 61 iii Questionnaires ................................................................................................................................. 63 Interviews .......................................................................................................................................... 64 Ethics approval ............................................................................................................................................... 66 Data analysis .................................................................................................................................................... 67 Conclusion ........................................................................................................................................................