STUDY ON MOTORIZATION PROGRESS PATTERN IN ASIAN MEGACITIES AND THE INFLUENTIAL FACTORS, FOCUSING ON PRIVATE CARS AND MOTORCYCLES

Abstract

 Rapid economic growth in developing countries has led to the increase in the number of private cars and motorcycles. While it’s projected that the people would shift from motorcycles to private cars when the income reaches a certain level, some cities show unique growth patterns, such as the shift from motorcycle to car not occurring or motorcycle ownership increasing further. In this study, a database on car and motorcycle ownership in Asian megacities was developed to enable international comparison and analysis over time, in order to investigate the influential factors of the motorization progress pattern.

 Through the comparative analysis, population density and road development level can be considered as the influential factor. For densely populated cities with insufficient road space, the shift from motorcycle to private car may not occur, and such cities may become more motorcycle-oriented. It is important to develop the database for road development level, to predict future motorization and discuss on transport policies.