Rapid urbanization in China has caused a large number of rural-to-urban migrants (RUMs) and rapid urban land expansion (ULE). Understanding the relationship between RUMs and ULE has important implications for urban sustainable development. This study explored the spatial patterns of RUMs and ULE in Hubei Province from 2009 to 2014, and analyzed the relationship between the two using a decoupling model. The results show that: (1) a large proportion of the rural population migrated to urban areas in Hubei Province from 2009 to 2014, and the distribution of RUMs was uneven: developed areas attracted more RUMs than undeveloped regions; (2) the urban land in Hubei Province increased rapidly from 2009 to 2014, and the urban land use in Hubei Province was extensive and inefficient; (3) the decoupling types between RUMs and ULE in Hubei Province were dominated by expansive negative and weak decoupling; (4) according to the changes in per capita urban land area and decoupling types, the coordination relationship between RUMs and ULE in Hubei Province was divided into eight types, and while the relationship between RUMs and ULE in most areas were coordinated and beneficial to urban land intensive use, the rest were uncoordinated. Finally, reasonable implications for urban sustainable development and new land use policy were put forward.
This study proposes an innovative integrated method for evaluating the evacuation and rescue capabilities of open spaces through a case study in Wuhan, China. A dual-scenario network analysis model was set up to calculate travel time among communities, open spaces, and rescue facilities during peak and non-peak hours. The distribution of traffic flow was derived on the basis of a gravity model and used to construct supply-demand indexes (SDIs). SDIs such as evacuation (ESDI), rescue (RSDI), and comprehensive SDIs (CSDI) were used to evaluate the suitability of open space locations. This study drew five major findings as follows: (1) ESDI, RSDI, and CSDI can effectively evaluate the spatial suitability of open spaces when these SDIs are integrated with the gravity model. (2) The quadrant distribution analysis of ESDI can be an effective method for determining the reasons for the change in values in the two traffic scenarios and for helping planners in adjusting their policies to enhance the capability of an area. (3) The impact of the different β values on SDIs can show positive, negative, and inconspicuous correlations with large, moderate, and minimal variations, respectively. (4) The analysis of the supply-demand relationship of open spaces in Wuhan indicates a spatial mismatch in comprehensive evacuation and rescue capacities. (5) Traffic congestion can be a significant impact factor on evacuation and rescue capabilities but not on comprehensive capability.