ZHANG Tianran1, ZHOU Jiangping2, ZHOU Mingzhi2
1. Shanghai Urban Planning & Design Research Institute, Shanghai 200040, China; 2. University of Hongkong, Hongkong 999077, China

Abstract： Theoretically, the adjustment of jobs-housing land use planning in cities can improve commuting efficiency, but to what extent such ideal planning can be converted into a practical benefit is often complicated and unknown. Based on existing literature and theories, this paper analyzes the limitation of jobs-housing balance and the multiple factors that affect actual commuting efficiency. Taking Shanghai as an example, the paper uses housing prices, economic census, and other socio-demographic data to estimate the coefficient of geographical association and Gini coefficient. The potential factors that cause excess commuting in Shanghai, including the resident-enterprise behavior choices, the objective laws of economic development, the complexity of market effect, and the level of jobs-housing matching are discussed. Finally, the paper proposes rational public transportation-oriented development, targeted transportation subsidies, and promotion of employment information symmetry.

Keywords： jobs-housing spatial distribution; jobs-housing balance; commuting efficiency; coefficient of geographic association; Gini coefficient; Shanghai