Assessing the extent and effects of jobs-housing mismatch in new towns of Hong Kong

Abstract

Spatial imbalance of jobs and housing has been extensively researched in the Western cities; however the findings may not be applicable in Hong Kong's situation as a compact city with its unique geographical characteristics. Hong Kong is one of the most densely populated cities in the world. To deal with the scare of urban land problem, the Hong Kong Government started to develop New Towns in the suburban areas, because lands for residential use are getting scarce especially in Kowloon and the Hong Kong Island, where traditionally the urban area and business districts are located. When the government first introduced the concept of New Town development, it was intended to develop self-contained communities. However, observations shown that long-distance travels for employment and high transportation costs are common cases for residents in Hong Kong New Towns. The time and costs spent in accessing jobs may affects the lives of the New Town residents, especially for some lower income people who cannot afford such expense. Other social impact might also be caused, such as increasing transport load to the road network. In the light of these issues, this study aimed to assess the extent of job-housing mismatch in Hong Kong particular to the New Towns, to see if there's any social impact brought by the job-housing mismatch condition of Hong Kong, particular to the New Towns residents and to see if the job-housing mismatch condition of Hong Kong affects New Town residents' quality of life, especially for the lower income group, with reference to a case study of Tung Chung, and finally, provide suggestions for future development of Tung Chung. In this study, the extent of job-housing mismatch is assessed by comparing different districts with the city's general situation as a whole, to spot out the districts with relatively higher level in job-housing imbalanced. From this study, it was found that job-housing mismatch is more serious in the inner city urban area with longer development history in Kowloon and also in the New Towns. In these districts, social impact, like lower employment rate, lower median income and adding loads to transportation system might be brought by the job-housing mismatch. From the case study of Tung Chung lower-income residents, it is found that job-housing mismatch caused obstacles for employment, and residents' satisfaction level to their dwelling place is low. It is also found that the effects of job-housing mismatch are also affecting their family member and their social life. It is suggested that extending the MTR Tung Chung line and the development of an employment center e.g. an industrial estate will ease the mismatch problem in Tung Chung. The Government should, at the same time consider the problem of poverty concentration in future New Towns developments.