Land readjustment and metropolitan growth: an examination of suburban landdevelopment and urban sprawl in the Tokyo metropolitan area

Land Readjustment (LR) is a land development technique used in many countri es around the world including Germany, Sweden, Japan, Taiwan and Korea. In essence it is a method whereby an irregular pattern of agricultural land ho ldings is re-arranged into regular building plots and equipped with basic u rban infrastructure such as roads and drains. A percentage of each landowne r's holding is contributed to provide land for roads and parks, and for som e plots to sell to pay the costs of the project. Its use has been particula rly widespread in Japan vi here it is responsible for some 30% of the exist ing urban area, and is commonly referred to as 'The Mother of City Planning (Toshi Keikaku no Haha). LR has for 20 years also been the focus of an int ernational effort to introduce the technique to the developing countries of South East Asia. Although there is now a large literature on Japanese LR a s a result of that project, however, virtually all of that literature focus ses on practical aspects of how to implement projects, and on case studies of individual projects. Little attention has been paid to the role of LR in Japanese urban growth and urban planning at a city or regional scale, alth ough such an examination is necessary to understanding LR in Japan, and Jap anese urbanisation and urban planning more generally. The present research examines the role of LR in shaping patterns of urban development in the rap idly growing northern suburbs of Tokyo in Saitama prefecture. in particular , the claim commonly made by Japanese writers that LR prevents urban sprawl is examined. Sprawl and its prevention have long been a preoccupation of b oth Western and Japanese urban planners for aesthetic and efficiency reason s. However, it has recently gained importance as the critical interconnecti ons between urban form and urban travel patterns, and greenhouse gas emissi ons and global warming have become more widely recognised. The case studies examine the role of LR in land development and urban growth at the regiona l scale (Saitama prefecture) and at the local scale (Urawa, Omiya and Ageo cities). GIS mapping and analysis of the case study areas, and interviews w ith planners and participants are used to examine the role and impacts of L R projects in suburban land development in Japan. The research suggests tha t while there are various impacts of LR projects because they are so widely used, in a range of different contexts, it is fair to say that LR projects contribute to increased sprawl at the regional scale, while largely failin g to prevent it at the local scale. (C) 2000 Elsevier Science Ltd. All righ ts reserved.