Assessing the influence of intra-urban mobility on small business dynamics in Gulistan and Gulshan commercial areas of Dhaka

Micro, Small, and Medium-Sized Enterprises (MSMEs) contribute approximately 25% of Bangladesh’s GDP and account for nearly 80% of employment. However, the influence of intra-urban mobility on the residential and workplace decisions of small business owners and employees remains underexplored. Existing studies have focused largely on general commuting behavior, with limited attention to the interaction between business location, residential choice, and mobility dynamics within Dhaka’s commercial centers. This study examines the mobility patterns and socio-economic characteristics of small business owners and employees in Gulistan and Gulshan commercial areas. A mixed-methods approach was adopted using questionnaire data from 384 respondents, analyzed through descriptive statistics, multiple regression, Principal Component Analysis (PCA), and geospatial techniques using SPSS, MS Excel, and ArcGIS. The results show that workers in Gulshan exhibit higher educational attainment, greater residential stability, shorter commuting distances, and more efficient mobility than those in Gulistan, where longer commutes, higher transport costs, and greater residential and occupational mobility prevail. PCA extracted five principal components explaining 92% of the total variance, while the classification model achieved 94% accuracy, confirming clear structural differences between the two commercial areas. Regression analysis identified sex ( p < 0.10) and commuting distance ( p < 0.01) as the significant predictors of commuting time. The findings support integrated land-use and transport planning through mixed-use development, improved public transport, enhanced pedestrian infrastructure, and gender-responsive mobility policies to promote equitable and sustainable urban development in Dhaka.