Has the legacy of Danwei persisted in transformations? the jobs-housing balance and commuting efficiency in Xi’an

• We study the jobs-housing balance in Xi’an in the excess commuting framework.
• Xi’an has a better quantitative jobs-housing balance than most other cities.
• The jobs-housing balance has bigger impacts on bus commuters than on car commuters.
• Job density and migrant ratio are correlated to the average commuting distance.
• Excess commuting and commuting potential consumed vary by mode of commuting.

Based on the 2008 Xi’an city-wide household travel survey data, this manuscript investigates the jobs-housing balance and commuting efficiency in Xi’an, against the backdrop of the dramatic urban spatial/social transformations occurred in the city since the 1990s. It compares selected excess-commuting indicators of Xi’an with those in selected Chinese and foreign cities. It finds that (a) Xi’an has a short theoretical minimum commute, which indicates a good relative numerical balance of jobs with respect to housing; (b) Xi’an has a relatively low commuting efficiency as compared to most of the foreign cities and other Chinese cities—but this can be caused by differences in the size of units of analysis across studies; (c) jobs-residents ratios would not significantly reduce the average commuting distance at the subarea level; (d) job density and migrant ratio are significantly correlated to the average commuting distance at the subarea level; (e) the jobs-housing balance has bigger impacts on bus commutes than on car commutes. This manuscript re-confirms the importance of conducting separate studies of the jobs-housing balance and related issues in the Chinese context. It also shows such studies could generate new insights and policy implications.