What About Land Uses in Mobility Hub Planning for Sustainable Travel Behavior?

Mobility hubs (MHs), where various transport modes converge, are increasingly being implemented as a key policy strategy to promote sustainable travel behavior. The existing literature is rich with proposals for various types of MH and suitable siting locations for them. However, studies comparing the role of land use patterns on the performance of different types of MH are scarce. This study aims to fill this gap by analyzing transit patronage and active mode share as performance indicators of MHs. It compares the effects of land use patterns on the performance of different types of MH classified by the nature of transport integration (e.g., train-tram-bus, train-tram, and train-bus) in different contexts (e.g., city district and suburb) in the Greater Melbourne Area, Australia. Results show that MHs enhance the use of transit and active transport modes for commuting purposes by up to 279% and 17%, respectively, compared to a unimodal train station, with maximum usage observed in a train-tram-bus hub, followed by train-tram and train-bus hubs. However, the underlying land use patterns significantly affect their performance. Specifically, each additional hectare of commercial land within the catchment of a train-tram-bus MH in the city district, a train-tram-bus MH in a suburban area, a train-tram MH in a suburban area, and a train-bus MH in a suburban area increases transit patronage by 6%, 9%, 5%, and 4%, respectively. These findings suggest that MH typologies should be designed in tandem with supportive land uses to maximize sustainable travel behavior. The findings inform urban and transport planners in designing optimal land use patterns for different types of MH to maximize sustainable travel behavior. They also support the development of tailored land use zoning policies to enhance the effectiveness of MHs.