Urban Green Space Accessibility and Residents’ Perceptions: A Spatial and Survey-Based Assessment of Sargodha, Pakistan

Authors

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.55737/trt/v-vi.335

Keywords:

Urban Green Spaces, Spatial Accessibility, Residents’ Perceptions, Green Space Utilization, Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI)

Abstract

Urban green spaces support urban sustainability and contribute the residents' well-being, but their advantages shaped by how residents perceive and use them, instead of physical availability alone. Evidence on this distinction remains scarce for medium-sized cities in Pakistan. This study examines residents' perceptions of environmental quality, attitudes, motivation, satisfaction, and utilization of urban green spaces in Sargodha City, and situates these perceptions within the city's vegetation cover and population distribution. A structured questionnaire using five-point Likert items was administered to 110 respondents selected through stratified random sampling. A 2026 Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) map derived from Landsat 9 OLI/TIRS imagery and the WorldPop 2026 gridded population dataset were used to characterize vegetation cover and to estimate the population living within 0 to 250 m, 250 to 500 m, 500 to 1000 m, and beyond 1000 m of urban green spaces. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics and reliability testing. Residents held strongly positive attitudes toward urban green spaces (M = 4.075) and reported high motivation to visit them (M = 3.566), whereas perceived environmental quality (M = 2.945), satisfaction (M = 2.919), and utilization (M = 2.914) remained moderate. Vegetation was unevenly distributed across the city, yet approximately 662,000 residents, about 84% of the estimated population, live within 1000 m of an urban green space and 179,673 within 250 m. Proximity therefore appears not to be the principal constraint on use in Sargodha; shortcomings in quality, facilities, and management are. The findings support quality-led and equitably distributed green infrastructure planning in medium-sized Pakistani cities.

Author Biography

  • Muhammad Mobeen, Lecturer, Department of Earth Sciences, University of Sargodha, Sargodha, Punjab, Pakistan.

    Corresponding Author: [email protected]

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Published

2026-06-30

Issue

Vol. 5 No. 6 (2026): Issue 6 (June Issue)

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Articles

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How to Cite

Shabbir, M., & Mobeen, M. (2026). Urban Green Space Accessibility and Residents’ Perceptions: A Spatial and Survey-Based Assessment of Sargodha, Pakistan . The Regional Tribune, 5(6), 344-361. https://doi.org/10.55737/trt/v-vi.335