Connecting the dots between urban infrastructure, well-being, livability, and equity: a data-driven approach

Developing sustainable, livable and equitable cities is a major policy goal. However, livability metrics are amorphous, emphasizing different dimensions. This paper develops a novel data-driven approach by directly surveying subjective well-being (SWB) of urban residents, alongside satisfaction with key social-ecological-infrastructural-urban correlates to inform livability and equity priorities. Our survey is novel in quantifying SWB (Cantril ladder) of urban residents and evaluating both household- and neighborhood-level correlates while addressing confounding effects of socio-demographics and personality. We propose a three-way typology of provisioning systems—foundational, consistently important and added-bonus—based on their quantitative relationship with SWB. Implemented in the Twin-Cities USA, among 21 attributes, home heating-cooling, neighborhood greenery, access to public transportation and snow removal emerged as foundational in cold Minnesota climates; home size was consistently important and satisfaction with streets an added-bonus. Assessing inequality in foundational and consistently important categories revealed disparities by income and race, informing local infrastructure priorities for livability and equity. Key insights emerged on sufficiency and sustainability.