Assessing spatial equity in employment opportunities in low-rent residential areas: Evidence from Urumqi, China

Differentiation in housing costs reinforces the concentration of low-income groups in low-rent residential areas through residential location sorting, making the surrounding employment opportunity environment a crucial perspective for assessing urban inclusiveness. Using residential areas as the unit of analysis, this study proposed a multidimensional framework for evaluating the spatial equity of urban employment by jointly capturing disparities between opportunity supply and access across three dimensions: employment opportunity quantity, wage levels, and commuting accessibility. In addition, we compared spatial differentiation among residential area types under rent-based stratification. This study focused on Urumqi, a major city in Northwest China, and integrated multisource geospatial data for 3465 residential areas, including points of interest (POIs), online job postings, and rental data for residential areas. Empirical analyses were conducted using the Gini coefficient, location quotient, and Geographically Weighted Regression (GWR) model. The findings reveal marked disparities in employment access across ring road areas and rent-based groups. In the urban core, low-rent residential areas benefit from relatively favorable commuting conditions; however, the accessible employment opportunities are concentrated in low-wage service sectors. In the peripheral zone, low-rent residential areas face a dual disadvantage of limited nearby employment supply and longer commuting distances. Even when spatial conditions are comparable, low-rent residential areas are systematically disadvantaged relative to non-low-rent residential areas in realized access to both employment opportunity quantity and wage levels. This pattern indicated that capability constraints impede the conversion of spatial resources into effective access. Further analyses highlight housing costs, infrastructure quality, and residential location as key associated factors. The findings underscored the importance of coordinated, targeted policies in affordable housing delivery, the spatial distribution of employment opportunities, and improvements in transport accessibility to promote urban spatial justice.