Transport for a sustainable future: Transport for a sustainable future: A research perspectiveA research perspective

John Whitelegg

j.whitelegg@btinternet.com

Park Diagonal Mar - Barcelona

Possible reactions

• Keep adding to supply in the hope of keeping up with demand (roads, parking, heavy rail, LRT)

• SMART growth (high density, high accessibility, modal shift, reduce need to travel)

• Fingers crossed (bit of both)

London

• In all practical senses it is impossible to fund/build/manage enough supply to cope with demand

• Feedback mechanisms are powerful enough to send us off course even if we try

Delivery

• £30 million mobility management intervention (school travel plans, work place travel plans, national standard for travel plans)

• Extension of congestion charging

• Huge investment and design effort in walking and cycling

• Climate change plan

Targeting work places

• 150,000 businesses in London

• Congestion Reduction Potential Analysis

• Top 30 “High Opportunity Enterprises”

So what are the big issues and the research needs?

• Child-friendly/older person friendly public space

• Car-reduced cities

• Climate Change

• Fiscal re-balancing

• Public health integration

Research Needs

• Streets for people (Appleyard)

• Accessibility leverage

• What changes behaviour (York project)

• Speed and aggression

• Human rights

Accessibility

• Facility density/local services

• Wide roads/fast moving traffic

• Barriers and detours

• City of short distances

16 per cent decrease in car trips

5 per cent increase in car trips

10 per cent increase in walking trips4 per cent decrease in walking trips

5 per cent increase in bus trips

4 per cent decrease in bus trips

1 per cent increase in cycle trips

1 per cent increase in cycle trips

Results

Are we missing the point?

• Water and sewage in mid-19th century cities

• Child labour in factories and coal mines

• Slavery

• London smog

• Berlin wall

• Mobility management in the 21st century city