Spatial accessibility and equity of public libraries in urban settings

Abstract

Spatial accessibility of libraries affects their usage. It is, therefore, crucial to consider spatial accessibility’s impacts on equity and inclusiveness of public libraries, which are part of public spheres for information services and community activities. We proposed a method to evaluate spatial accessibility and equity of public libraries in urban settings and conducted a preliminary study for public libraries in Washington D.C. Spatial accessibility is evaluated from two perspectives: the minimum distance to the nearest library of a community and the total number of libraries within certain distances. Spatial equity is evaluated as the correlation between the spatial distribution of libraries and community characteristics, which indicate the priority in need for library resources. We find that the spatial distribution of public libraries in D.C. can satisfy residents’ basic need for library resources, as most communities can access at least one public library within an average distance of 2,500 m. However, the minority population, children and youth have inequitably less diverse library resources on average than the other subpopulations.