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Rural accessibility can depend mainly on the services and facilities available, as well as the travel options for each group in the settlements. The layout of rural living facilities can be optimized to enhance the rural development and the happiness index of rural residents. The rural accessibility of facilities has gradually received much attention in recent years, since the rural revitalization strategy was launched in China. But, the current evaluation can be limited to a single evaluation object and perspective. Taking the Gao’an City, Yichun City, Jiangxi Province, China, as the study area, the spatial distribution characteristics of rural accessibility were analyzed from the perspectives of “Threshold- Supply and Demand”. An accessibility zoning model was then proposed to determine the driving mechanism and optimization path of rural accessibility using a coupling perspective. Firstly, the accessibility evaluation index system of rural life was constructed by considering four types of facilities: education, medical, commercial and cultural, and sports, together with the needs of rural residents in daily life and the demand for higher facilities and services, as the living standard improved. Secondly, a network data set with the time cost was constructed using the ArcMap network analysis tool in the road network of Gao’an City. The “isochronous analysis method for service demand” was used to obtain the lowest time cost of reaching specific living facilities at any location. The “two-step floating catchment area method” was improved to calculate the accessibility from the supply perspective. In addition, an accessibility zoning model was proposed to identify the four accessibility types using the coupled perspective of “Threshold-Supply and Demand”. There were different spatial distribution characteristics of facilities and settlements in the rural areas from those in cities. Finally, the accessibility model was evaluated on the influencing factors of rural accessibility for the optimal paths and specific measures. The results show that there were some large barriers to rural preschool education, medical treatment for major diseases, logistics, express delivery, and cultural and sports activities from the perspective of the minimum time cost, indicating the significant imbalance between urban and rural development. A relatively balanced regional supply and demand were observed in the education resources and population. The medical facilities presented a higher supply in some township centers than that in urban areas, whereas, there was an outstanding urban bias in the supply of commerce, culture, and sports. Four types (namely high threshold-low supply, high threshold-high supply, low threshold-low supply, low threshold-high supply) of accessible and inaccessible zones were divided in the Gao’an City under the rural accessibility zoning using the coupling perspective. Among them, the rural living accessibility was also influenced by the spatial impedance and supply-demand relationship. Three aspects can also be optimized: the spatial relationship adjustment, living facilities and road construction, and flow of living service elements. Therefore, decision-making can be very necessary to balance rural accessibility from different perspectives. A trade-off strategy between the different zoning and facilities can greatly contribute to optimal rural living and the layout of rural settlements. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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Copyright of Transactions of the Chinese Society of Agricultural Engineering is the property of Chinese Society of Agricultural Engineering and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)