Search Results (19)

With the rapid development of urban motorized transportation, the narrow and aging streets in historical and cultural districts can no longer meet modern traffic demands. The development of pedestrian systems and the improvement in street walkability have become important issues in the preservation and renewal of these districts. Although walkability research has established a relatively systematic theoretical framework and technical methods, current studies predominantly focus on modern urban roads due to limited attention to the unique characteristics of streets within historical and cultural districts. As a mixed-use area integrating residential, commercial, and tourism functions, the former Russian concession in Hankou features diverse street types and a rich spatial texture, making it a representative case for walkability research in historical districts. This study aimed to construct a walkability evaluation framework suited to the characteristics of such districts. First, relevant literature was reviewed and combined with the actual conditions of streets in the study area to select evaluation indicators and reconstruct the framework. Second, based on multi-source data, a comprehensive evaluation was conducted using spatial syntax, semantic segmentation, and GIS spatial analysis. The results show that streets with high walkability scores are mainly concentrated in the core tourism area and are strongly associated with the distribution of historical buildings. Finally, based on the evaluation results, three groups of representative streets were compared to analyze differences in pedestrian environments. Key issues such as low spatial quality and functional disorder were identified, and targeted optimization strategies are proposed. The findings provide useful references for the future preservation and sustainable renewal of historical and cultural districts. Full article

To estimate the potential and realized carbon emission reductions from implementation of reduced-impact logging (RIL) in Indonesia, we compiled logging emissions data from 15 concessions in Kalimantan and 10 from the Papuan provinces. Committed emissions data were collected for harvested timber as well as from collateral damage caused by felling, skidding, and clearing for haul roads and log yards. Emissions expressed as mean ± standard error per cubic meter of timber harvested, per area harvested, and per Mg of timber harvested (i.e., the ‘Carbon Impact Factor’) were 1.30 ± 0.15 Mg C m⁻³, 27.52 ± 4.44 Mg C ha⁻¹, and 6.88 ± 0.84 Mg Mg⁻¹, respectively. Among the sampled concessions, felling, hauling, and skidding caused 18–86%, 2–48%, and 6–75% of these emissions, respectively. Potential emission reductions calculated as the difference between observed emissions and those of the five best-performing concessions are 0.67 ± 0.15 Mg C m⁻³, 21.11 ± 4.38 Mg C ha⁻¹, and 4.20 ± 0.83 Mg Mg⁻¹, which represents reductions of 51%, 76%, and 61%, respectively. Extrapolating these estimates to all of Indonesia using average log production data from 2018 to 2021 results in an estimated annual emissions reduction of 14.47 Tg CO₂ from full adoption of RIL, which is 2.9% of Indonesia’s nationally determined contribution (NDC) from the forestry sector. Full article

The Kampar Peninsula, spanning approximately 735,091 hectares, is critical for its carbon reserves and biodiversity, including the endangered Sumatran tiger. However, nearly half of the 4 million hectares of peat swamp in the region is deforested, drained, decomposing, or burning, largely due to settlements and development projects. This research employs a mixed-method approach, using quantitative spatial analysis of Landsat imagery from 1990 to 2020 based on the Spectral Mixture Analysis (SMA) model to detect forest disturbances and classify land cover changes, utilizing the Normalized Difference Fraction Index (NDFI). Ground truthing validates the image interpretation with field conditions. Additionally, qualitative analysis through interviews and regulatory review examines spatial change trends, context, and driving factors. The result showed, over 30 years, that natural forest in the Kampar Peninsula decreased significantly from 723,895.30 hectares in 1990 to 433,395.20 hectares in 2020. The primary factors driving land use changes include the construction of access roads by oil companies in 1975, leading to extensive deforestation, and government policies during the New Order period that issued forest exploitation concessions and promoted transmigration programs, resulting in widespread establishment of oil palm and acacia plantations. Full article

Public–private partnerships (PPPs) are contractual schemes that have relative success in Latin America due to their configuration, where the spirit of the contract lies in an appropriate distribution of risks. This is both the most important and fundamental aspect of this contractual scheme but also the most complex, as it is the main cause of contract modifications (addenda) in countries across the region. In this context, different concessionary contractual frameworks for PPPs on the national road network of Peru were evaluated, revealing common failure indicators that lead to contract modifications within the first six years of the concession. This study offers the development of a management model that includes the good practices of contractual management of NEC4 Option F and the application of BIM information management processes, optimizing the management of infrastructure through emerging technologies of information management supported by agile contractual schemes. Full article

Peru has experienced significant growth but faces challenges with its infrastructure. Despite economic and population growth, competitiveness has not risen at the same pace. The importance of proper roads for economic development and the lack of planning have led the country to confront an infrastructure deficit. This deficit affects connectivity and the quality of the road networks, thereby influencing competitiveness. To bridge this gap, the PPP modality had been used, but challenges were encountered, ranging from the execution of works to maintenance issues. This research study pursues three main objectives: to describe the current landscape of road infrastructure in Peru; to present the Peruvian PPP system and the experience gained through implemented concession contracts; and to identify the critical success factors of Peruvian concessions and propose an evaluation methodology for future contracts. To achieve this, an empirical study of 16 operational road PPPs and a literature review of the most relevant international experiences on success variables for such contracts were conducted. The primary contribution of this study lies in presenting the Peruvian experience and identifying key success factors for this type of contracts in Peru. Full article

Madre de Dios is considered an important center of biodiversity in Peru due to its extensive Amazonian forests. However, the forests are under growing pressure due to land invasion, agricultural expansion, and gold mining. This makes support for forest management very important. This study aimed to evaluate the relationship between forest loss, land cover, land-use changes, and Brazil nut (Bertholletia excelsa Humb. & Bonpl) production in forest concessions in the Peruvian Amazon (2004–2020). Remote sensing techniques were used to classify images using the random forest algorithm, which was applied to the Landsat-5 thematic mapper, Landsat-7 enhanced thematic mapper, and Landsat-8 operational land imagery. Brazil nut production data from 2004–2020 was provided by the Regional Forest and Wildlife Service of Madre de Dios. In forest concessions, the forest area decreased continuously over the whole study period (160.11 ha/year). During the same time period, the change in forest cover in the concessions from Brazil nut to other uses was 4681 ha. At the same time, the authorization and extraction of Brazil nuts varied during the study period but did not show a downward trend. We found a significant and inverse relationship between the conversion of forest to agricultural land and Brazil nut production. However, there were insignificant relationships between forest loss, the persistence of agricultural and forest areas, and Brazil nut production. Therefore, despite the forest loss in the forest concession areas, Brazil nut production has not decreased. Production may not be affected because land pressure is higher near access roads, affecting only the areas near the roads rather than the actual areas where the Brazil nut-producing trees are located. Our results showed that nut production in non-timber forest product concessions would be negatively affected by deforestation and forest degradation, but only slightly. Full article

The surrounding area of Bubbling Well Road in early modern times, Shanghai, served as an important transportation hub connecting the western and central districts of Shanghai’s International Settlement. It also marked the beginning of a half-century trend of profit-oriented private gardens. The development process from rural outskirts to bustling commercial areas is exemplified by the area of Bubbling Well Road, making it significant for the study of urban transformation in early modern times in Shanghai. In this work, private gardens in the vicinity of Bubbling Well Road are examined as hierarchical elements of urban subdivision using the layering approach of the Historic Urban Landscape. Based on summarizing the trajectory of different types of private gardens under urbanization, typical time nodes were extracted and then horizontally correlated with the process of urbanization to elucidate the hierarchical logic underlying the symbiotic interaction between private gardens and cities. The results show that private gardens have created new hot spots and gathered a lot of popularity for the Jing’an Temple area, prompting this area to gradually evolve from a traditional town to a “backyard garden” of Concession dominated by the entertainment industry. Through the rapid development of the modern entertainment, commerce, and real estate industries, the Jing’an Temple area successfully embraced the trend of developing Concession to the West while achieving transformations in business models and urban style. Finally, with the assistance of the transitional entertainment space, such as profit-oriented gardens, the Jing’an Temple area has successfully undergone a transformation into a modern entertainment industry hub and solidified its commercial status as the “consumption circle” of Shanghai. We systematically investigated the significance of the urban subdivision layer in relation to the temporal changes in the urban environmental structure and the evolution of spatial organization patterns at the macro level; this helps deepen the historical urban landscape approach from an ideological framework level to the practical level. Full article

Recently, in Chile, infrastructure asset value has been incorporated into highway concession contracts. However, the current valuation model used for rigid pavements is not adapted to the standards and conditions of such projects. This study develops a valuation model for rigid pavements of interurban highway concessions and evaluates it in a case study. The proposed model captures the loss in asset value associated with the performance degradation over time, considering a typical Jointed Plain Concrete Pavement (JCPC) configuration. The value is calculated using performance indicators that represent the structural capacity and level of service provided to road users. The model represents a significant improvement compared to current asset valuation models used in highway concessions. It enables the public agency to objectively evaluate the preservation of asset value carried out by the private partner during the concession. Additionally, it could also be used as a tool to establish payments between infrastructure stakeholders. Some of the concepts applied could also be relevant for other highway assets existing in Public–Private Partnership (PPP) projects. Full article

The future development of forest industries in Russia, besides the country’s geopolitical issues, could be seriously undermined by the depletion of forest resources available under the current model of forest management that mainly relies on clearcutting mature coniferous forests and leaving these areas for natural regeneration. The introduction of a new model that prioritizes efficient forest regeneration faces many problems on the ground. The efficiency of the use of funds allocated by both governmental and private logging companies for forest regeneration and subsequent tending of young stands should urgently be significantly increased. The government should also develop pragmatic economic incentives to encourage logging concession holders to switch to the new model and to address the problem of the spatial shift (demarginalization) of the country’s forest complex from northern and eastern “green fields” to secondary mixed and southern taiga forests. Instead of harvesting low-productivity northern taiga forests of European Russia and remote areas of Central and Eastern Siberia, wood sourcing should be mainly concentrated in the immediate vicinity of existing mills. Moreover, the development of “greenfield” projects in wilderness forest areas that currently lack any kind of infrastructure should not be encouraged. The focus on the regions with productive southern taiga, mixed and broadleaf forests, developed wood-processing infrastructure, and high forest roads density could ensure the economically beneficial transition towards resilient forestry. Full article

Forest management aimed at the sustainable use of forest resources is an alternative land use to deforestation and can improve forest conservation in tropical regions. The construction of forest infrastructure, including forest roads, skid trails, and log-landings, is a key factor in minimizing the impacts and forest disturbances typically caused by selective logging activities in tropical forests. In this study, we used field and secondary data to assess the planned and implemented forest infrastructure in a study site of 5723 hectares under a forest concession in the Caxiuanã National Forest, located in the state of Pará, Brazilian Amazon. We tested alternative modeling approaches (the Tomlin and Spanning Tree models) by comparing them with the previously planned and implemented logging infrastructure by a concessionaire timber company (CEMAL Ltd.) in the study site. Our results indicate that the Tomlin model was the best approach for allocating forest roads in the study area, as it demonstrated the optimal balance between financial costs and forest disturbances for timber extraction. Additionally, Minimum Spanning Tree modeling achieved the most favorable results in delineating secondary roads and skid trails in the study site, despite slightly higher financial costs compared to the minimum acceptable costs. This alternative approach to modeling forest infrastructure can contribute to reducing forest disturbances and increasing the economic and ecological sustainability of forest management in tropical forests. Full article

This paper aims to analyze the recent development of taxi services in Slovakia on two levels. The first is the area of technological change, which includes the use of digital platforms for the closing of the contract between the passenger and the taxi operator. The second level of perspective is the legislative change. Commonly used taxi digital platforms (applications) have started to require a taxi concession from self-employed drivers, and many other requirements. We will also analyze the issue of value-added tax. This article processes quantitative data on the number of valid taxi concessions. The data were obtained from the unified information system in road transport and supplemented with other statistical inputs. The article describes the distribution of more than 6819 issued concessions in individual regions and analyzes 12,477 taxi vehicles registered in these licenses for operating a taxi service. This article also includes the numbers of performed technical and emission inspections of taxi vehicles. With these data, it is possible to prove a sharp increase in interest in the concession due to the introduction of digital applications. A significant change in business conditions in this area can lead to an increase in the number of businesses by 70% in larger cities, while the issue of sustainability is questionable. In the last part, the article also deals with the issue of electromobility, and environmental aspects connected with taxi legislation changes. Full article

Indonesian forestry challenges in attributional land-use conflicts of overlapping villages and state forests have affected community livelihoods and forest sustainability for decades. This empirical research uncovers the socio-economic attributes of villages in order to gain a better understanding of people−forest relationships in order to guide improved forest management and governance for long-term sustainability. Data were obtained from 69 villages located in the forest management unit of Lakitan Bukit Cogong in South Sumatra Province. Spatially-explicit quantitative measurements and qualitative approaches were employed to explore the interrelationships between human footprint, village development, and conflict resolution strategies over two decades. The results confirmed that utilization of forest areas as part of the village territory (such as for building settlements, public/social infrastructure facilities, plantations and agricultural fields) has long been administered without permits, destabilizing forest functions. Moreover, aspects such as human population size, proximity of villages to the national road and sub-district capital, and the transmigration settlement units have an impact on the Human Footprint Index and Village Development Index. Furthermore, our analyses identified three distinctive forms of conflict based on village type: (1) villages which are administratively included in the forest area; (2) villages for transmigration settlement; and (3) villages adjacent to company management concession areas. In these villages, the clarity of land/forest boundaries and property rights are predominant conflict issues. Several recommendations are proposed to support sustainable forest development; namely, controlling human activities in the forest, improving village management governance, and resolving associated conflicts. Full article

The COVID-19 pandemic created an enormous disruption to the everyday life of the modern society. Among the various urban systems, transportation services were among those that suffered the most significant impacts, particularly severe in the case of highways. This paper addresses the challenges and responses to the pandemic from a private highway operator’s perspective and from a multidisciplinary perspective. Highway operators faced two main challenges: on one hand, the need to cope with the potential disruption caused by the pandemic and a national lockdown for almost three months, the provision of road services, and the requirement to ensure the proper operation and maintenance, and on the other hand, the strong negative impact of the pandemic on levels of traffic. Our case study shows that the operator’s management response in question is essentially characterised by being a first response to short term impacts while balancing for workers health and safety, engineering and management, internal business management, and overall economic impact. Highway operators were hardly prepared for such an event and became more focused on prioritising their employees and clients’ safety to avoid service disruption. Regarding levels of traffic, the pandemic has had severe effects, although to a varying degree, depending on the different types of vehicles (heavy, light, passenger, freight, among other types of vehicles) and the location of highways (coastal vs. interior). The lessons learnt can be valuable in future disruptive events and for other highway concession operators. Full article

The Ecuadorian Amazon is considered a biodiverse region, and at the same time contains the largest number of oil blocks and oilfields in the country. Oil exploitation requires the implementation of oil facilities and related infrastructure, such as roads, water, and energy supply, for operation. These large engineering works can alter the dynamics of the Amazonian natural ecosystems. This paper analyzes the land use and land cover (LULC) change and relates spatial patterns within an oil block located in the province of Orellana, Ecuador. The study was processed in two phases, the first corresponding to the collection and classification of LULC classes within the oil block. The second phase concerned the calculation of landscape metrics, with the purpose of quantitatively characterizing each class. This analysis was carried out for the pre-concession, post-concession scenarios of the oil block and the current scenario of the region. The results revealed that the low predominance of forest cover within the study region is not directly associated with the beginning of the Block 47 concession. On the other hand, a significant reduction of the Coca River was evidenced for the 2018 scenario. Full article

The development of a linear mixed model to describe the degradation of friction on flexible road pavements to be included in pavement management systems is the aim of this study. It also aims at showing that, at the network level, factors such as temperature, rainfall, hypsometry, type of layer, and geometric alignment features may influence the degradation of friction throughout time. A dataset from six districts of Portugal with 7204 sections was made available by the Ascendi Concession highway network. Linear mixed models with random effects in the intercept were developed for the two-level and three-level datasets involving time, section and district. While the three-level models are region-specific, the two-level models offer the possibility to be adopted to other areas. For both levels, two approaches were made: One integrating into the model only the variables inherent to traffic and climate conditions and the other including also the factors intrinsic to the highway characteristics. The prediction accuracy of the model was improved when the variables hypsometry, geometrical features, and type of layer were considered. Therefore, accurate predictions for friction evolution throughout time are available to assist the network manager to optimize the overall level of road safety. Full article