Compact and livable? Identifying and managing the relationships between intensive land use and urban livability: Evidence from 337 cities in China

Intensive land use (ILU) has an important impact on urban livability, necessitating an elucidation of their interaction to formulate rational urban development policies and enhance residents' well-being. Here, we explore the interaction between ILU and urban livability using an integrated framework. Based on panel data from 337 cities in China (2002−2022), we applied the coupling coordination degree model, the binary spatial autocorrelation model, and the nonlinear spatial Durbin model (SDM). Our findings indicate that the direct impact of ILU on urban livability follows an N-shaped curve, that is, urban livability exhibits an up-down-up trend as ILU increases. ILU also exerts an N-shaped spatial spillover effect on the urban livability of neighboring cities. Moreover, the adaptation between ILU and urban livability has improved over the study period, although the national adaptation level remains relatively low. Eastern China shows higher adaptation levels compared to western regions. These results suggest that local governments should integrate the adaptation relationship between ILU and urban livability into ILU assessment indicators to ensure sustainable urban development.