Dynamic Evaluation of Urban Sustainability Based on ELECTRE: A Case Study from China

Sustainable urban evaluation is an important management tool to grasp the status of urban development in real time and to make policy adjustments. In this study, the evaluation indicator system is constructed from the three dimensions of economy, society, and environment. The ELECTRE (elimination et choice translation reality) model based on information entropy weighting is employed to evaluate urban sustainability. The model applies three-dimensional data to explore the dynamics of sustainable urban development. The spatial measurement model is used to explore the spatial effects of cities. Finally, 17 cities in Henan Province from 2013 to 2017 are used as case studies for urban sustainable development evaluation. The results show that, in 2013–2017, the sustainability of cities such as Zhengzhou, Luoyang, and Sanmenxia was stable at a high level, while the sustainability levels of Kaifeng, Luohe, and Xinyang showed a fluctuating downward trend, and the sustainability levels of Puyang, Nanyang, and Xinxiang showed a fluctuating upward trend. Among the 17 cities, Zhengzhou has the highest sustainability level and its economic and social sustainability levels are significantly better than other cities. Zhoukou is the city with the lowest level of sustainability. In addition, from 2013 to 2016, the level of urban sustainability was not spatially correlated but gradually presented positive spatial correlation and the characteristics of clustering distribution in 2017. The cities such as Zhengzhou, Luoyang, and Jiaozuo are mainly represented by “high-high (H-H)” agglomeration. In contrast, Shangqiu, Zhoukou, and Zhumadian are mainly represented by “low-low (L-L)” agglomeration. This research provides suggestions and decision-making support for promoting urban sustainability.