Transit-oriented development with urban sprawl? Four phases of urban growth and policy intervention in Tokyo

Since the 1990 s, transit-oriented development (TOD) has been globally recognized as an approach to mitigate urban sprawl. However, few studies have explored the role of TOD in urban growth and sprawl of older cities with historical transits. Based on Tokyo, a transit-supported metropolis since the late 19th century, we investigated literature, statistics, and cartographies to explore TOD’s influence on urban sprawl at the macro- and microscopic levels. With a mixed method research design, we present a text-based historical policy discussion followed by a data-based current condition discussion. These two discussions indicate that the transit system and TOD in Tokyo is historically path dependent with supportive policies, with an economic purpose-driven modal shift since the 1990 s and a social purpose-driven modal shift since the 2010 s. Currently, in macroscope, the transit-led urban growth divided Tokyo into a compact inner metropolis and sprawled peripheries. In microscope, informal urban-rural spaces were found to be widespread between transit corridors. These findings imply that TOD alone may not completely prevent urban sprawl but requires appropriate policies to make a difference. Older cities with historical transits confront different challenges and thus could offer purposeful lessons in practice.