Residential relocation, school relocation and children's transport: The effect of the Great East Japan Earthquake and Tsunami 2011

This research aims to explore the problems encountered by children as they travel to school in a Japanese city after the disruptions of the Great East Earthquake and Tsunami 2011. Disaster recovery constitutes: short-term rescue/relief; mid-term reconstruction (temporary settlement while rebuilding community); and long-term recovery (long-term settlement and disaster mitigation). This study focuses on the impact on children's travel in a longer-term perspective. Little research has been published on longer-term impacts of disasters on the community despite the rich literature on evacuation and short-term travel behavioural changes after natural disasters. A retrospective qualitative analysis of 73 student cases in Ishinomaki, Miyagi Prefecture, identified several critical and complex problems encountered during both the short- and long-term periods following the disaster. Student travel to school was compromised by: a) students being re-located to temporary residential accommodation a long way from their existing or new schools (compounded by limited transport services); b) post-disaster, school facilities had been destroyed or relocated, or were being used as temporary community shelters; and c) damage to road infrastructure, missing traffic signals/lights and debris that remained for a relatively long time after the disaster. The paper concludes with the policy implications for the different phases of recovery, and suggests directions for future research. (C) 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.